Behind Bars
by Dragon Ruler 06
Summary: Coby is the new guard in the most infamous prison ever known, Impel Down. Of course, his new superior just has to have him watch over the most dangerous criminals they have. Hopefully, he can survive the Strawhat Gang, the Surgeon of Death and his two men, and Eustass Kidd with his right hand man. -M to be on the Safe Side-YAOI is Included-
1. Chapter 1

**I will admit this: I kind of got this idea after reading 'Fatal Attraction', which was freaking addicting as hell. This will not follow the same line as 'Fatal Attraction', not even the same pairing. But, this will be a criminal/serial killer theme kind of story.**

 **Mainly, it takes place in prison. Pairings will be jumping all over the place, but a few will be stable. Depending on how well I can get this written. We'll see how this experiment goes. Right? Right. Wish me luck! ^^**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. Nothing here belongs to me. Just this story.**

 **Here the Chapter Starts**

Impel Down.

One of the highest security prisons in all of New World City. Many go in. Very, very few ever make it out. It is a place where only the worst criminals go, those with several counts of similar crimes mixed with several counts of various added in. Those with the sickest of minds, toughest fists, and twisted pleasures.

The ones that guard these psychopathic individuals must be stronger. Their minds must be nothing more than steel walls keeping poisonous gas out. Their will must be unbreakable. Their pity and sympathy for these inmates, nonexistent.

"Can't believe I'm really here," the newcomer said, staring over the masses with wide eyes in order to take in as much detail as possible.

"Steel yourself," the head guard ordered, his voice cold and eyes firm. "If you show anything but strength to these scum, they will use it to their advantage."

"Yes, sir, Guard Captain Lucci!" the young man with pink hair accepted, saluting to the older man.

"At ease, Guardsman Coby," Rob Lucci, the strongest and toughest of the guards in the entire prison, told him. "It is best to always be on your toes. Never take your mind off your duty nor your eyes off your charges. This way. The block you will be working in for some time will truly test your mettle."

"Understood, sir," Coby said with a nod of his head as he followed after the dark-haired guard. While Coby's uniform was the standard green with the prison's mark, Rob Lucci was dressed in a black suit with a top hat, of all things. Perched on his shoulder was a white pigeon that seemed to mimic the man's movements any way it could.

They left the current block and were soon in another. The inmates were out of their cells, gathered together in the open space. Some were smoking leisurely, others talking in their own groups. Coby thought he spotted a pair below the catwalk, one pushing the other against the wall and rubbing his hips against the smaller male's backside.

"Um…"

"Ignore them, it's a usual occurrence," Lucci stated, coming to a stop with his hands behind his back. Coby stopped next to him, thankfully unable to see the two men. "We allow them these privileges in order to help keep them calm. The more they have, the easier they are to handle. Make no mistake. These men are the worst of the worst in our prison. Even if some of them appear or act friendly, they are just as dangerous as the next and last. Some, more so."

"Who are they?" Coby asked hesitantly. "What have they done that makes them so terrible?"

Lucci scoffed and rolled his eyes, as though disappointed the new guard had to even ask in the first place. "I suppose we should go from the easiest to pick out of a crowd," he said calmly. "Eustass 'Captain' Kidd, right over there with the bright red hair. It is easy to pick him from any crowd."

Coby looked over then shivered as narrowed eyes locked onto his own orbs. Though without eyebrows, the grin on the dark lips was enough for Coby to realize that the criminal was evaluating him. Debating how he was going to cut him up into little pieces and hide them without anyone else knowing it.

"He is in for several counts of DUI," Lucci went on. Coby thought that wasn't so bad when it comes to such a prison. "As well as sixteen counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, seven counts for aggravated sexual assault with a deadly weapon, and nine counts of murder. His victims were all beaten to death without use of a weapon. He is highly aggressive with a very short fuse." Coby gulped, turning slightly pale. "But he is not our worst. Simply one of them."

Nodding his head towards the thick-mane blonde man that was coming out from under the catwalk, the dominant one Coby realized from what he spotted earlier. "Right there is his right hand. Real name is unknown, but he responds to the name 'Killer'. Fiercely loyal to Eustass Kidd. If we try going after one, we will need backup because the other will follow. Once again, several counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and just as many counts of murder as his friend. Each one, different victims but same numbers.

"The young man he was with is called 'Penguin'. Real name is, once again, unknown. He has no known family and we are unable to tie him into any city. He claims he was a street urchin that was simply called Penguin because of his hat. He is more of a murderer's accomplice than an actual murderer himself. Though he is guilty of several kidnapping charges, he is also in here for those murders. A shared sentence."

"Who was the murderer he was helping?" Coby asked hesitantly, watching the hatted man approach two other men, each wearing their own kind of hat as well.

"That man wearing the spotted white hat," the other indicated. "Trafalgar D Water Law. He was a highly skilled surgeon, his specialty being the heart. He was the pet of any hospital's board, sought after by every man with the most severe heart conditions that no one thought curable. And he did cure them. All of them."

"So why is he here, exactly?" the younger asked, watching the tattooed man stretch his arms above his thrown-back head. His shirt was off, showing his various inked markings covering his shoulders, torso, arms, and even the letters DEATH written across both sets of fingers.

"Have you ever heard of the Surgeon of Death?"

Coby froze then snapped to Lucci in disbelief. "That's him?!" he exclaimed in shock. "THE Surgeon of Death?! The man that killed more than one hundred people and removed their hearts all across the Grand Line country?!"

"While moving from city to city whenever the trail grew too warm for his comfort," the suited man chuckled humorlessly. "Those two are his accomplices, Penguin and Shachi. Both are in, not only as his accomplices, but for charges of kidnapping and rape as well. At least, concerning Shachi."

The pink-haired guard almost choked on his own spit, turning back to the trio then blinked in surprise when the Surgeon of Death picked up a stuffed polar bear toy and hugged it tightly to his chest. "What's with the plushy?"

"Bepo," Lucci scoffed. "It keeps him calm. Never remove it from his possession. And if he happens to get his hands on a sharp object, make sure to stay as far from him as possible. One of my own was too stupid to do such and ended up with a long zipper sown onto his lips."

"Where did he even-?"

"We're still not sure. Moving on, Monkey D Luffy. He looks as carefree as any teenager, but he can very easily get into your mind and make you his friend without you realizing it. He may not look it, but he is a gang leader, and we have his gang locked up here as well. The Monster Trio are what we call him, his first member, and the one they call their cook. He has delusions of being a pirate captain, but that does not make him any less of a threat."

"He's here because he runs a gang?" Coby inquired curiously, watching the young man with the straw hat run around the area.

"One of the strongest gangs, easily up there with Eustass Kidd's," Lucci continued, now crossing his arms. "He had taken down all gangs in his own city, then moved on to fight more and more. The government deems him a large enough threat that they are still pushing to have all of them on death row, from the oldest to the youngest."

"How old are they?"

"The oldest is a former swordsman, fifty-six years old. How Strawhat Luffy got him out of his 'retirement', we do not know. The youngest is thirteen, striving to be a doctor. He's a shy child and we are hoping that time in prison will straighten him out before he becomes too dangerous. The problem is that they are all fiercely loyal to Strawhat, enough that we had no choice but to keep them all together in order to lessen riots and attempted breakouts. Even when their breakouts were successful, they never did get very far. They were simply trying to get back to Strawhat."

"I take it that's his gang, then?" Coby guessed, looking to the odd group. To his surprise, there were a couple of women in the group, one with long wavy orange hair and the other with long straight black hair.

"Roronoa Zoro, a skilled swordsman that uses three blades at once. We obviously confiscated those but do not underestimate him. He is the second member of the Monster Trio. The third is Vinsmoke Sanji, third son of our own Judge Vinsmoke. He does not hit with his hands, but one of his kicks can and will break your ribcage. Those three, when faced with a common threat, are near impossible to handle.

"The rest of their gang include a cowardly, compulsive liar of a sniper names Usopp. A woman that can predict the weather itself called Nami. Another woman that the government has always seen as a threat since she was a child, Nico Robin. A crafter that has, more than once, created unique ways of escape for himself and the rest of their crew, Cutty Flam, though responds to Franky. The youngest, Tony-Tony Chopper. The oldest, a musician turned killer, 'Dead Bones' Brooks. All are here for massive destruction of private property, government property, aggravated assaults, and they even have a few murders under their belts."

"They sound tough," the newbie commented lowly. "But wait, shouldn't the women be separated from the men?"

"We tried," Lucci sighed in annoyance, his shoulders shrugging. "Those women are safe so long as Vinsmoke 'Black-Leg' Sanji is around them. They can also handle themselves. One guard attempted to have sex with the girl named Nami when it was just her and Nico Robin. When we found him, he was curled into a ball and whimpering at every touch."

"What did they do to him?" Coby hesitantly pressed.

"He never said and they claim innocence. The only mark we were ever able to find was a rope burn around his neck." He turned on his heel, approaching the gated stairs. "Follow me. It is time for proper introductions."

"Wait, we're going in there with them?!" Coby exclaimed in surprise. Guards don't mingle with the inmates, they watched from a distance.

"Stay close," was his only order as the man opened the gate, drawing all the attention from below to him as he descended from the stairs, Coby trying to stay close without crowding.

"Hey, Pigeon Guy!" Monkey D Luffy shouted. "Who's the new guard?"

"Stop making friends with everyone, dumbass," Eustass Kidd growled at him.

"You don't have to be so cranky, Eustass-ya," Trafalgar Law chuckled, leisurely pushing himself off the wall and walking over to the redhead, his Bepo still held to his chest. "Or are you just that sexually frustrated?"

"You offering, Trafalgar?"

"I find myself bored."

"Enough," Lucci ordered, not raising his voice but he was still obeyed, though Kidd looked like he wanted to beat the man for bossing him around. "Everyone, this is our new guard for this block, Coby. Strawhat, you may be pleased to know this. Your own grandfather trained him."

"What?! Gramps trained this scrawny kid?!" Luffy shouted in disbelief.

"You're Vice-Admiral Garp's grandson?!" Coby shouted back. No wonder he was deemed a threat if Garp had a hand in training this young man.

"Shishishi, yeah!" Luffy replied with a bright grin as he sat on the floor, the soles of his feet pressing together. "Hey, Pigeon Guy. When are my brothers going to get back?"

"Portgas D Ace has extended his stay in Solitary Confinement by another two days," Lucci informed coldly. "You will see Outlook Sabo by dinner tonight."

"What? Two more days?!"

"Shut up, already!" Kidd yelled at him. "You're giving me a headache."

"I could help with that," Law offered, smirking suggestively at the redhead, but his eyes held a darker look.

"Unless you're going to swallow my cock down to my balls, no thanks," the other snarled at him.

"Ruin my fun, why don't you," the surgeon scowled, squeezing his polar bear plush a little tighter. "See if I ever offer you a hand, mouth, or ass again."

"You enjoy it too much to stay away, slut," the redhead taunted, earning a groan from the blonde next to him.

The man called Killer slapped his forehead and slowly shook his head. "Drop it, Kidd."

"Tch. Whatever."

"Are you quite done?" Lucci demanded. "Now, you know our new guard. Behave yourselves and make sure your cells are presentable. We will be performing an inspection in five minutes."

"The fuck for?" Eustass Kidd growled, marching over to Lucci. "You assholes just looked over our cells this morning! What, you think we made a brand new tunnel within five hours?"

"Considering Cutty Flam's ability, yes," the Guard Captain answered briskly over his shoulder.

"Hey, I haven't done anything today!" Cutty Flam – or would it be Franky? – protested loudly from the other side of the room. "I've been on my super best behavior!"

"Which would explain that hole in your floor that we had to fill in this morning," another guard chuckled from above.

"Screw you, Kaku, you square-nosed freak!" Franky – Coby will settle for that – shouted out to the guard, shaking one of his large fists.

"When is dinner?!" Luffy suddenly cried out. "I'm hungry! Sanji, I need some meat!"

"Yeah, yeah," a blonde man with a cigarette between his lips waved off. "As soon as they let me out, I'll make you something. I can't do anything from here." He suddenly turned to the two women, kneeling down on one knee before them with arms spread wide. "And I will make something extra special for you lovely ladies, as well!"

Nico Robin chuckled softly behind her hand as Nami laced her fingers together. "We look forward to it, Sanji-kun!"

Lucci, without a word more, turned and headed back towards the stairs. For a moment, Coby stood there, taking in the strangeness of the group of criminals. Seeing the growing smirk on Kidd's face spurned the pink-haired guard into jogging back to follow his superior.

"They are an odd group, and a handful," Lucci explained as he locked the stair gate once both were on the catwalks. "Never underestimate them. Am I understood?"

"Yes, sir," Coby replied with a sharp nod.

"You are also forbidden from joining them down below without a partner, preferably one of my own men. Foolish as some may be, a few have earned enough respect from these people that they won't try anything. If they start fighting among themselves, do not try and break them apart. These fights will happen and they are one of the two ways they release tension. If you catch any of them having sex, again, do not interrupt or attempt separation. You will meet Outlook Sabo tonight and Portgas D Ace in two days. Both are arsonist and one has a habit of setting people on fire."

"Understood."

"Good. Now, any questions?" Lucci inquired, as though he was waiting for Coby to ask to be transferred to a different block.

It must happen often after introductions if he was expecting it. That, or he really thought Coby simply couldn't hack it. Either way, the newcomer was eager to prove his superior wrong. He can handle it. Yes, these men are dangerous and kind of scary. But he can handle them. A retired marine officer trained him. He was one of the top students in the academy. He can do this!

"Where am I posted, sir?" he asked, his voice strong and stance professional.

Lucci chuckled with a smirk dancing on his lips. "You will stay with Kaku and he will teach you the ropes from here on. Good luck."

 **Here is a line!**

They are insane. Just plain, flat insane. There is no other way of describing them.

Within two hours, there were three fights between Roronoa Zoro and Vinsmoke Sanji. As well as Trafalgar Law dragging Eustass Kidd away to one of the cells for roughly forty-five minutes, though their noise level said plenty about what they were doing.

Franky had taken apart a chair and somehow made a weapon out of the parts, which was quickly confiscated by Kaku. Usopp kept telling tall tales of impossible exploits only to cower under the heated glares of Kidd (once he was done with Trafalgar) and probably Killer, as well. It was hard to tell with that blonde since his hair covers the upper half of his face. Penguin had managed to worm his way onto Killer's lap and, with words alone, draw him back to some secluded corner for more sex.

Nami was hitting the men around her, mainly Luffy because he wouldn't stop talking about how hungry he was, as well as Zoro and Sanji because of their fighting. Robin was just sitting there and reading a book, occasionally patting little Chopper on his head, running her fingers through his thick brown curls. Coby quickly found out that Robin and Franky are Chopper's main guardians in the prison, the more responsible ones of the group, and neither let anyone outside their gang near the boy.

The craziest part, or funniest if Kaku's opinion was to be taken into account, was when Law suddenly charged towards Kidd, screaming at him about how he spilled his 'filth' all over the surgeon's beloved bear. Killer, despite being loyal to Kidd, seemed to ignore the incident in favor of his current activity.

"Is all this normal?" Coby asked the guard next to him.

Kaku is a bit strange himself. The way he moves seems impossibly fast, but he was good-natured to an extent. The only odd thing about his features is his nose, slightly elongated and square.

"Well, usually Ace would be egging these fights on or starting them," Kaku replied with a shrug. "Then Sabo would be trying to rein in both his brothers. You haven't really seen much yet, newbie. This is good behavior for them."

"But it's all so crazy, and the only thing we've done was take that weapon Franky made out of a chair," Coby pointed out in exasperation. "I mean, Eustass and Trafalgar are beating the crap out of each other right now and no one is stopping it. Same with Roronoa and Vinsmoke!"

"Roronoa and Vinsmoke don't get along real well, but that's just how they show their affection," Kaku brushed off. "As for Eustass and Trafalgar, they'll finish this up and probably have another round before supper. Two, if Eustass tries to get back into Trafalgar's good graces."

"So they basically just fight or have sex all day?" the new guard asked in disbelief.

"Like I said, they're behaving today," Kaku corrected. "They're also trying to figure you out. If you haven't noticed, while Eustass and Trafalgar were in the cell, Penguin and Shachi were studying you, as well as Killer. Nami was, too, but she generally uses her feminine wiles to get her way. Ignore her, even if she is trying to show you her breasts. Just to let you know, she acts like she will, but she won't."

Coby blinked in surprise. Part of his job is to watch the inmates, figure out what makes them tick and how best to control them should a riot happen. He didn't realize that they are studying him in return. Though it does make sense that they would try. He is the new guy, unaware of their tricks and quirks, meaning he would be the easy target until he got used to them.

"Mind if I ask why you wanted to come here, of all prisons?" the other suddenly asked him, though didn't take his eyes off the fight below.

"I've always wanted to keep people safe, probably because I was such a cowardly weakling as a child," Coby softly replied, rubbing the back of his head. "I was always looking for justice, but could never really find it. One day, I just decided that, instead of becoming a police officer, I could become a jail guard. Instead of hunting down criminals, I'm making sure they don't go back into the world. I'm protecting innocents, just in a different way."

"Well, there is that," Kaku sighed with a shrug of his shoulders, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. "This, though, is one of the top prisons. We give our inmates a bit more freedom than most do, but that just makes things easier on us, too. We're just as strict on them concerning many other – oh shit!" He suddenly hopped up onto the railing, hand on his radio. "Trafalgar has a knife! Repeat, Trafalgar has a knife!" Turning to Coby, he ordered, "Stay here!"

Coby watched him jump from the railing, easily landing on his feet., then sprint over to the wrestling inmates. His jaw dropped, spotting the long bleeding lines on Kidd's face and the bloody knife in Trafalgar's hand. 'If he has a sharp object, stay away.' Lucci's warning rang through his ears once more. Kaku is heading straight for the guy. He can't go in there alone!

As he ran towards the stair gate, he spotted Killer bolting out of his corner and tackle Trafalgar off the redhead before Kaku could reach them. Straddling the former doctor's torso, he started punching. Only Kaku grabbed his arm and pulled him off, pushing him back to Eustass' side while Trafalgar easily got back to his feet, knife still in hand.

Eustass was growling and swearing loudly while pressing a hand against his bleeding face. Nothing he said towards Trafalgar was polite or nice, mainly things along the line of 'psychotic whore'. Finally reaching the gate, Coby tried opening it, only a tanned hand grabbed his wrist and jerked it back.

"Easy there, kid, we got this," a dark-haired man with a streak of gray and a large scar on his face told him. "Stay put." He opened the gate and stepped down, followed by a woman with long blonde hair. "Kaku, need any help?"

"Keep these two back," Kaku told the other just as Eustass jumped to his feet and started stomping over to Trafalgar. The older man easily grabbed hold of Eustass, twisting his arm behind his back and pinning him to the ground.

"That's sexual harassment," the blonde woman said, indicating to Killer his untucked self. "Put it away, already."

"Not enjoying the view? Bet a bitch like you never gets any!" Eustass laughed from his position. "Hey, not into old men. Get the fuck off!"

"You have him, Jyabura?" Kaku asked, keeping his eyes on the slowly pacing form of Trafalgar.

"Yeah, for now," the other replied.

"Kalifa, got Killer?"

"He won't be going anywhere," the woman answered, making sure to stay between Killer and Eustass. Or more likely, between Killer and Jyabura.

"Good, keep an eye on the rest," Kaku advised as he slowly approached the doctor, who was now smirking while twirling his knife around his fingers, Bepo still held in the other hand. "Alright, Trafalgar. Hand the knife over. You don't want to go back to Solitary, right?"

"He left a mess on Bepo," Trafalgar informed, bringing his bear to his chest. "So I am going to make a mess of him."

"Come on, you know that's not allowed," the guard continued. "Look, Visitor's Day is tomorrow. I know you're looking forward to seeing some of your old friends and family again. You can't do that if you're in Solitary. So hand it over, we'll take Eustass to patch him up, and we'll wash Bepo for you. Sound like a plan?"

"No," Trafalgar denied. "I wash Bepo."

"Alright, we'll bring you things to wash Bepo with," Kaku accepted. "Just hand the knife over first."

Coby watched Trafalgar contemplate his options, looking over the room in thought. While looking out the window, he slowly raised the armed hand, pointing it towards Kaku. "Warm water, a clean rag, lots of soap, and a clean towel," he said.

The exhale Kaku let out was easily visible as he reached out for the blade. Before he could grasp it though, Penguin was suddenly at his side, sending out a swift kick that knocked the guard to the ground. Shachi had jumped onto the older guard's back, putting him into a chokehold that caused him to pull back enough for Eustass to get out from under him. Before Kalifa could do anything, Trafalgar had grabbed her, holding the knife to her throat. Coby started to open the gate again.

"Torao!" 'Strawhat' suddenly shouted, bringing some attention over to him. Coby, startled by the shout, stopped unlocking the gate. "You're gonna miss your uncle if you keep fighting!"

"Ease up, already," Roronoa threw in next. "It'll be boring here without you around. Besides, hardly worth it."

Trafalgar seemed to think once again before suddenly throwing his arms into the air, releasing Kalifa. "Shachi, Penguin, back up." Shachi released the guard he was holding as Penguin stepped back until both were behind Trafalgar. He twirled the knife around, holding it by the blade, then held it out for one of the guards to take. "I still want to clean Bepo."

"Be lucky to get anything after that stunt!" Jyabura growled, rubbing his throat.

"I'll still get it for you," Kaku told him, cautiously stepping forward and taking the knife. "After we get Eustass to Medical."

"The stains will be set by then!" the doctor stated harshly.

"Should have thought of that before trying this," Kaku returned, indicating to the trio. "Eustass, hands."

"The fuck for?!" the redhead shouted.

"Policy. Now, hands."

To Coby's surprise, Eustass Kidd held his hands out and allowed his wrists to be cuffed together. With Jyabura to one side and Kaku on the other, Kalifa leading them out, he was brought up the stairs without fighting against his binds. He just tugged them as far as he could.

Coby stepped back as Kalifa unlocked the gate from the other side, holding it open long enough for the three men to walk through before closing it behind them. The subtle click he heard told him of it's automatic locking.

"You two have him now?" Kaku asked.

"Yeah, we'll get him to Medical and back before supper," Jyabura waved off as Kalifa took Kaku's spot.

Letting out a huff, the guard turned to Coby with a small smile. "Well, it has been a month since he's pulled a knife," he informed. "Figures it would the day we get a new guy when he pulls out another one."

"Are you okay?" Coby inquired.

"That's nothing compared to Vinsmoke's kicks," he reassured. "I just let my guard down like an idiot. Generally, when Trafalgar stands down, the other two don't try anything." He looked over the inmates, Trafalgar still visibly upset but not throwing a tantrum. Killer went to a cell nearby, probably his own, and it sounded like he closed the door. "Killer won't come out until Eustass is back. His way of sulking." He looked down at the knife in his hand, the shaft was wood and the blade small, looking more like a scalpel than a knife.

"Where did he get the things to make this?" Coby asked, looking over the shank, which was the proper term as far as Coby is aware.

"He didn't," Kaku replied. "This was smuggled to him. We still haven't found out how he gets his hands on these things. We suspect family bringing it, but could never prove it."

"You mean his uncle, the one Strawhat mentioned?"

Kaku visibly shivered at the mention of the uncle. "Piece of advice, stay away from that man. If he was in here, he would have a whole block and platoon for just him alone."

"Is he really that bad?"

"We think he's the reason Trafalgar is the way he is."

 **Here the Chapter Ends**

 **I think this has gone on long enough. So yeah, our cast so far is CP9, Kidd Pirates (a few), Heart Pirates (a few), Strawhat Pirates, and Coby. What do you guys think so far?**

 **I personally have no clue how a prison is run or how they work. This is just how this place works. Lucci is mainly in charge of his group of guards (the CP9 group), not the rest of them. Just wanted to clear that up.**

 **But let me know what you guys think! ^^ This is just an experiment right now, but if it goes well, then I may keep working on it.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay. It looks like the first chapter got some good feedback. At least, that's what the numbers say. Glad you guys are enjoying it so far. Now go on ahead and read. I won't delay you any longer.**

 **Except for this. Disclaimer: Do not own One Piece.**

 **Here the Chapter Starts**

Standing watch over the mess hall was a lot like standing over the block. Catwalks crisscrossed above the eating inmates, at least a dozen guards on the floor armed with batons and tazers. Anyone above was carrying tranquilizer guns, each weapon held like it was about to be used in the next second.

Coby scanned over the inmates, trying to ignore the intoxicating scent of the meal spread out across the various tables. He didn't think prisons fed such amazing food to the inmates.

"Vinsmoke takes over the kitchens around mealtime when he realized just how low a quality everyone was eating," Kaku explained calmly, never taking his eyes from the crowd below. "He's apparently faced trauma of starvation as a child and refuses to allow anyone else to go through it. It's a good thing he is in the kitchens, though. He's the only one that can keep up with Strawhat and Jewelry Bonney over there."

He waved his hand to a woman with long hot pink hair, her teeth tearing into any bit of food she could get her hands on. Coby was amazed that she was eating so much yet looked like she was a model. Around her were other unusual criminals, one with a x-shaped scar on his chin. He actually looked somewhat familiar to Coby, but he couldn't place him.

He also noticed Monkey D Luffy sitting in the center of his gang, chowing down with vigor while trying to swipe food from their plates. The act was probably why they are surrounding him, so used to his food stealing that they unconsciously guarded their meals from his wandering hands. Everyone else would have had their food stolen by now, or Strawhat would be in a fight because he stole food from the wrong person.

Nearby the gang was Eustass Kidd, stitches up and down the long slices Trafalgar left on him earlier. With luck, the scarring will be minimal. Next to him was his blonde companion, the two conversing silently. Penguin was sitting next to Killer as well, practically in the other man's lap while still staying a part of Trafalgar's little group.

The door off to the side opened, revealing three figures entering the room. Two were guards, the person in the middle an obvious prisoner. One side of his face had a terrible burn scar that his blonde hair attempted to cover up as it fell over his face. However, he was smiling as he offered his wrists to be freed of cuffs. He even thanked the guards with him once the cuffs were off, then made his way over to Strawhat and his gang.

When Luffy noticed him, he gave out a cry of happiness, jumping out of his seat and latching onto the newcomer like a leech. The older man simply laughed gently, patting his head and gently pried him off so that they could both sit down and eat.

"Outlook Sabo," Kaku identified. "I know Lucci said something about him and Portgas D Ace to you."

"He said they were in Solitary Confinement," Coby replied.

"They were, now it's just Ace in there," the other acknowledged with a nod and a shrug. "Apparently, one of the guards riled him up enough to get a beat down from him. One thing that you have to know about them is that Monkey D Luffy is their little brother. They are also fiercely protective of him. Sabo is the calmest and most polite out of the three, but he can also be the most dangerous."

"Guard Captain mentioned that he and Portgas are arsonist and one set people on fire," he repeated, curious for facts.

"That would be Portgas," Kaku chuckled lightly. "He's also a member of the Whitebeard Family, so we expect that old man and the rest of the family to come breaking down walls for him. Sabo is as much of an arsonist, but he mainly limits himself to buildings instead of people. It would be a lesser stay for him if he wasn't setting government buildings on fire."

"So when Enies Lobby burned, would that have been one of them?"

"Ha! No, that one was Strawhat's."

"The Sabaody Courthouse?"

"Strawhat."

"What about Marineford University?"

"All three. They mainly destroyed it because they didn't want to be there. We blame Garp since he was the one to throw them in."

Coby blinked in surprise. Such famous locations, important to their very government, destroyed. The news of each one circulated through social media for months, overlapping each other as each happened. The destruction wasn't anything to scoff at either. Each place was rubble in the end, hardly a sign to what it once was or looked like.

"Remember, these people are nothing to underestimate," Kaku reminded him firmly. "Oh for the love of- Strawhat! Stop stealing food from the others!"

"But I'm hungry!" Monkey D Luffy yelled back.

The blonde by him guarded his plate as well as the others. Perhaps he knows the antics as well as the gang since the two are supposed to be brothers. Another inmate, muscular with a tuff of blonde hair that made his head look similar to a pineapple, approached Sabo and asked him something lowly. Sabo shook his head, earning a scowl from the older inmate, who then turned on his heel and returned to his seat.

"That one had to be asking about Portgas," one of the other guards, Jyabura if he was recalling correctly, commented.

"Must have been," Kaku agreed with a nod.

"Who is he?" Coby inquired.

"Another reason why we keep expecting Whitebeard to show up," Jyabura answered this time. "Newgate Marco, the first of Whitebeard's 'sons'. He's at a higher rank than Portgas. In fact, the police caught him not long after Portgas when he tried breaking the little fire-spitter out before his arrival here."

"He's in a different cell block," Kaku reassured the pink-haired guard. "Ace was going to be there, too, if he wasn't constantly trying to get to his youngest brother. It took a lot to convince Akainu to allow for Portgas to transfer over to our block. I'm gonna be honest with you, kid. You're lucky to have Lucci as your commanding officer. Akainu is a real piece of work."

"Makes Hannyabal and Magellan look like wet kittens compared to him," the scarred man muttered under his breath. "I can't stand Lucci, but I'd rather have him than Akainu."

Coby hummed lowly, scanning over the floor once again. "So what happens after dinner?" he asked. "Everyone returns to their cells for the night?"

"Most places would, but some of our inmates actually get more energetic after they eat," Kaku explained. "Strawhat being one of them. He'll also be trying to spend some more time with his brother now that he's back. It won't be a quiet night, I can say that much."

"Well, that's night shift's problem, not ours," Jyabura pointed out with a scoff. "Kumadori may put on a play that will make them want to sleep just to shut him up."

"Aren't we supposed to have someone new on night shift as well?" Kaku inquired curiously.

"You mean that Nero guy?" the older guard returned, scowling. "According to Lucci, the guy is basically worthless. We'll see what the others say about him when we come in for our shift in the morning."

 **Here is a line!**

He knows that they are brothers, or at least call each other brother. They look nothing alike. But it was still an odd sight to see Strawhat Luffy sitting in the new blonde man's lap. The other was just letting him do it, too. Coby is not sure if it was a comfort thing or just a Strawhat thing. Since he arrived that day, he has noticed that Strawhat is a hands-on type of person.

When he wants to get someone's attention, he generally grabs an arm or a piece of clothing while calling out the name of the individual. He also likes hugging his companions a lot. He did try hugging Trafalgar, calling him 'Torao' instead, but Outlook Sabo picked him up and returned to the rest of the gang. It was evident that the older brother did not want Strawhat anywhere near Trafalgar.

To Coby's surprise, despite the incident earlier, Eustass was not giving Trafalgar a wider berth. If anything, all seemed somewhat normal. Killer wasn't falling for Penguin's coaxing, choosing to stay with the redhead, which visibly upset the younger hatted man.

"Shift change is soon," Kaku announced, startling Coby from his observations. "They'll mingle around for another hour then be locked up for the night."

"You know, I'm actually surprised about this place," Coby admitted. "During my years in the Academy, we were taught that prisons run a lot stricter than this. Inmates had to stay in lines when they're out of their cells unless they're in the yard. No smoking allowed. Personal possessions limited."

"You mean the opposite of what you've seen here," Kaku chuckled softly. "The thing is that these guys, at first, were getting too hard for us to handle. Even Lucci was having difficulty keeping them all in check. This started off as an experiment to see if having a little freedom would calm them down. It was a slow process, but we eventually reached this point. They are calmer, we just have to make sure the fights don't get too out of hand."

"You mean like earlier when Trafalgar had that shank," the pink-haired guard noted.

"Exactly. We'll let them beat the crap out of each other, it's almost therapeutic to them, but if the crowd gets too big or a weapon is pulled, then we jump in. Like I told you before, you came in on a good day."

"What are the nights like here?" he asked curiously.

Kaku shrugged uncaringly. "Generally two to a cell, sometimes three if the situation calls for it. Trafalgar shares his cell with his two guys. Eustass with Killer. Strawhat stays with his brothers, they kind of dog-pile in the middle of the cell. The women have their own cell and the guys get paired off however they want. Most of the time, it's quiet. Fukuro's incident a couple months ago was the latest night ruckus."

"Fukuro?" Coby repeated.

"Chapapapa! He means me!" someone declared from behind, causing the newbie to jump in surprise before he spun around. He blinked upon seeing the rotund man with a zipper for a mouth. "Shift change, Kaku."

"Alright," the other accepted with a relieving sigh, pulling off his hat to rub at his orange hair. "Keep an eye on Trafalgar. He pulled a knife on Eustass earlier today. Portgas is still in Solitary for a couple more days, but Outlook Sabo is back."

"They was in Solitary for four days, now they're keeping Portgas another two?" another man, pale with long pinkish-white hair exclaimed in surprise. "The poor man. I shall recite a prayer for his extended stay! Yayoi!"

"Please don't," Fukuro groaned.

Kaku laughed gently then turned to Coby. "Night shift is generally pretty easy, so there aren't as many guards," he explained. "This is Fukuro and Kumadori. Blueno is out sick, so you may not meet him for a while. You two, this is Coby, new day guard. I hear you two have a new night guard."

"Lucci has him right now," Fukuro snickered.

"Poor guy."

Coby couldn't find it in himself to say anything, too surprised by the zipper mouth. He heard about the incident, but he assumed that it was already taken care of completely. But the man still has a zipper, and it looked like it was embedded into his skin.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer," Fukuro said, noticing Coby's stare.

"Ah! Sorry!" he replied, snapping his gaze from the other.

"I know what you're thinking," Kaku stated. "The thing is that that zipper is now his mouth. Trafalgar removed the lips and sew in the zipper before Kumadori finally noticed something was wrong. It was quiet."

"He talks a lot," Kumadori pointed out, patting Fukuro on the head.

"We tried to have it removed, but no one could without causing severe nerve damage to his face," Kaku continued. "The only one who can remove it is also the one who put it on him."

"That's terrible!" Coby exclaimed.

"I'm one of the lucky ones," Fukuro reassured. "I still have my heart. Chapapapa!"

"We will handle things from here," Kumadori promised with a bow. "Enjoy your evening and get plenty of sleep."

"Sure thing, have a good night," Kaku returned as he started walking away. "Come on, Coby."

"Okay," Coby said with a nod then turned to the two men. "It was a pleasure meeting you."

"We'll see you in the morning," Fukuro responded, patting the young guard on the shoulder then nudging him to follow after Kaku.

Once he was by the other guard, Kaku spoke. "I talked with Lucci earlier. He thinks that you should take home some files about the inmates to study. We all have added in our own notes. The sooner you learn about them, the better. Otherwise, you're fresh meat to them. Easy prey. We don't want anything to happen to such a promising addition."

"Understood," the younger accepted. "Where would I find the files?"

"Lucci probably already put them in your locker by now," he chuckled. "When he gets an idea, he follows through with it. This just means he actually thinks you can handle the job. Make sure to study the files as much as possible tonight. But don't deny yourself sleep."

 **Here is a line!**

The sun was already below the horizon by the time he got home, a thin line of blended color all that was left from the sunset. Even though it was his first day and he mostly just kept watch from above, Coby felt exhausted.

"I'm home," he called out to his roommate.

"Welcome back," the other returned, looking at him from the edge of the couch. "You look wiped out."

"Guess it was more draining than I thought," he chuckled weakly, making his way into the kitchen to throw something together for a quick supper.

"I got your usual order take-out from that one restaurant that actually memorized our orders," his roommate informed, looking back to the news on the TV. "It's in the fridge."

"Thank god! Helmeppo, you're a lifesaver! I'm starving!"

"First day is always the worst, in my opinion," Helmeppo muttered under his breath as Coby dug into the fridge for his meal. "How was it, anyway?"

"Fine, I guess," Coby sighed as he put the cold food into the microwave. "Believe it or not, but I was put in the block where their worst are held. You wouldn't believe just how much they let them get away with."

"I just catch the criminal," the blonde reminded, turning the television off. "So, if you were put into the worst block, what all do you have?"

"Give me a minute," he replied as the microwave signaled it completion. Grabbing the stack of files and small box of tapes, with a player, he went to the living room and sat on the couch by his roommate once the blonde had moved his legs. He laid the files out across the table, each one with a small picture and name on the front. He placed the player next to the stack, a tape already set up inside it. "I was listening to some of these on the way home," he stated as he rewound the tape. "You should hear some of the things I get to deal with." Stopping it, he pressed play next.

"This is Doctor Hiriluk with Trafalgar D Water Law, also known as the 'Surgeon of Death'. Session One," an older man's voice played out through the speakers. Helmeppo's jaw dropped in surprise as he turned wide eyes to Coby. Before he could say anything, the other shushed him and indicated for him to listen. "How are you doing today, Law?"

"Well enough, I suppose," Trafalgar's voice drifted through next. "I was just admitted to Impel Down a month ago and I am now seeing a psychiatrist. I shouldn't be surprised by this turn of events, but I do find it unusual. What is the point of all this? To find out what makes us tick?"

"To hopefully help you get away from your aggressive behavior and get you back into the world without threatening hundreds or thousands of innocents."

"Face it. Even if you succeeded, the world won't accept us. Every time a mysterious dead body pops up, we will be the first to be implicated, even if we're five cities away."

"We can only hope. Now, are you comfortable here? I understand that two of your friends are in this prison as well."

"Penguin and Shachi are both with me, yes. They even share my cell since anyone that gets too close to them tends to get hurt if I'm not there. As for my comfort, I suppose I could use a thicker mattress with springs that don't dig into my back and 600-thread count cotton sheets. But, beggars can't be choosers and all that."

"I see." There was a sound of rustling paper before Hiriluk spoke again. "I understand that you're classified as a genius, graduating from all your schools far earlier than many anticipated. You were top of your class in Grand Line University, a straight A student with many degrees and doctorates to your name. You've worked in various hospitals and saved so many lives. Yet you've also killed almost as many as you've saved. Why is that? What made you kill?"

A scoff of amusement. "Do you know what it means to be a doctor, truly? Here you are, psychoanalyzing me to find out just where it all went wrong. You don't even understand what kind of power you have at your fingertips. My power was the ability to choose who lives and who dies. I worked on so many hearts, my hands have been inside the chests of more people than you can imagine. I chose who lived. I chose who died. Just like you can choose who stays here and who leaves. Who will keep their mind intact and who you can shatter."

"That is not the work of a doctor." The psychiatrist sounded like he was offended by the very idea of Trafalgar's description.

"It is. Others just haven't realized it yet."

"So he's a nutjob," Helmeppo commented as Coby stopped the tape and removed it from the player, grabbing another and replacing the first. "I can't believe it. The Surgeon of Death is in the block you're guarding? That's insane! You should ask for a transfer!"

"I'll be fine, it's not like I'm on the floor with them," Coby reassured. "But listen to this. See, Trafalgar has this stuffed bear he calls Bepo, and I couldn't figure out why he's so attached to it. Listening to this session, I learned two things."

He pressed the play button, Hiriluk's voice filling the air once more. "This is Doctor Hiriluk with Trafalgar D Water Law. Session Four. How are you today?"

"I'm fine."

"I'm glad to hear it. I saw you had a visitor yesterday, a tall man with blonde hair and sunglasses."

"He's my uncle."

"And he gave you that bear?"

"Bepo."

"Bepo. I understand that you gave security a difficult time when they tried examining Bepo for smuggled items."

"Uncle Doffy gave him to me to keep me company. Bepo was a gift from my adopted father. Our first Christmas, he kept tripping over himself so that he could give me Bepo first."

"Law, would you tell me about your father? According to your file, you don't have any living relations left."

"I might as well not. My family was killed. Both my parents were doctors, and the killers were angry because they weren't able to save their loved ones. I had a little sister, too. Lami. I hid her under a bed while I went to look for our parents. They were dead when I found them and Lami was dead when I got back."

"Is that where you started having these urges? Was this trauma the reason why you wanted to hurt others? Revenge?"

"No. I wanted to die myself. I lost my family. The officer that found me took me to the station and got my statement from me. Call after call, all my relatives refused to take me in. Too far. Can't afford another mouth to feed. Too troublesome. Too creepy." A soft chuckle. "He told me that he didn't feel right leaving a child in a cell like I was being punished for surviving, and he didn't want to leave me in an orphanage. He and his brother were raised in an orphanage until Doffy got enough money to get them out. He said it was terrible. So he took me home, brought me back the next morning. Every day, every night, for a week. No one would take me in. So he did."

"Your adoptive father."

"Yes. His name was Donquixote Rocinante. Everyone called him Corazon because of his tacky heart-theme clothing. I called him Cora-san. He was a police officer, the clumsiest yet most kind-hearted person you would ever be lucky to meet. Cora-san and Uncle Doffy were as close as you would expect brothers to be after everything they went through. Even when they disagree, Cora-san would go to him if he was stuck in a rut and Uncle Doffy would protect him from the world."

"He sounds like a good man. I see in your file that he is not listed as a contact number in any way."

"Because he's dead. He died when I graduated from medical school. I was so proud, I was going to be a doctor like my parents. I was going to save lives." A strange sound snapped out, like a choked sob. "I couldn't even save him!" A whimper and another choked back sob.

"…Law, would you tell me what happened?"

"Go to hell!" The sudden shout caused both Coby and Helmeppo to jump back. "Stop making me remember! Stop it! Just fucking stop it! Cora-san!"

The tape was quickly stopped, the lid popped open but untouched.

"Whoa," Helmeppo said first, looking to the younger with wide eyes. "Kind of makes you wonder."

"Yeah. Hey, would there be anything at the station about him?" Coby inquired curiously, looking over to his police officer roommate.

"I'm not going to go digging up a dead man's belonging or past just to satisfy your curiosity," the blonde denied, holding his hands up. "You know what they say about the cat. I still think you should transfer."

"Wait until you hear about this guy," the pink-haired male said, putting a new tape in.

"This is Doctor Kureha with Eustass Kidd, known as 'Captain' among his group of ruffians. Session One."

"Why do I have an old hag for a therapist?"

"Behave yourself. I'm much younger than I look. It's dealing with brats like you that causes the early aging."

"Nah. You're a hag. Why can't doctors be young and hot? Seriously, you just ruined any fantasy I ever had of fucking my doctor."

"Aw, imagine my poor heart just splitting in half."

"Ha! I'd like to split your skull in half!" A sound not unlike chains being yanked, though were unable to give. Probably grounded into concrete.

"Alright, let's get on with this. File says a lot about you and your methods. Where did you even come from that you learned how to beat a man with a toothbrush?"

"I sharpened it, so it wasn't beating. It was stabbing."

"Sure. Let's rewind a bit. Records say you were a street kid. No family that you know of?"

"Nah. Born and raised homeless. Never knew my dad. Ma died when I was three, that was a cold winter, and Killer found me a few days later. He's been taking care of me since."

"So what happened when you first attacked someone?"

"Mainly defense. Growing up on the street, all you know is how to steal and how to fight. Soon enough, both just become routine. Things get heated and people tend to die. Just the way shit happens."

"You murdered seven people, beat several more, and even sexually assaulting some of them. You don't feel any remorse for it?"

"The fuck is remorse? It was live or die. I lived. They died. Welcome to the world!" A barking laugh, one that sent shivers up their spines. "It's a dog eat dog world, and I'm the fucking alpha."

Coby stopped the tape, taking it out of the player calmly. "Eustass Kidd. He's pretty bad."

"Heard about him," Helmeppo said with a nod. "If I remember correctly, when he was finally caught, he was covered in blood and laughing. He even took down quite a few of the officers. They had to call backup for the arrest, especially when his friend started fighting, too."

"I can believe it," the pink-haired guard stated, sighing gently. "But listen to this guy. It's almost like he doesn't really know he's in a prison."

"Another crazy one?"

"Just listen." He pressed the play button, off-key humming soon filling the room.

"This is Doctor Hiriluk with Monkey D Luffy, also known as Strawhat Luffy. Session One. So, Luffy, tell me how you are today."

"I'm great! This place is a little boring, and the people are kind of mean. But I'm still great! When can I see my friends?"

"I'm sorry, Luffy, but that may not be possible."

"What? Boo! Why not?"

"You are aware that you're in a prison, right? In a prison, we can't just let you go hang out with your friends at the drop of a hat."

"Man, that's stupid. I'm kind of hungry now. Can't I see Sanji so he can feed me?"

"That just cannot happen right now, Luffy. Please pay attention." There was a small chuckle followed by ruffled paper. "So you're Vice-Admiral Garp's grandson. That actually explains quite a bit about you."

"What?!" Helmeppo exclaimed. "Garp's grandson?!" Coby quickly shushed him.

"Yeah, but Gramps just kept trying to turn my brothers and I into military fighters or police officers. Those jobs are boring and there are too many rules. We just want our freedom!"

"Who do you mean by 'we'?"

"Me and my big brothers, of course! Their names are Sabo and Ace."

"Alright then. What about the places you destroyed?"

"Huh? Like what?"

"Enies Lobby, for starters."

Helmeppo's jaw dropped in shock.

"Oh, that. Well, they tried taking Robin away and I wasn't going to let them. So I broke in, freed her, and some people got beat up and the building kind of fell down." A strange sound came out next, like something was being pulled gently.

"Was Garp the one to give you that hat? I've noticed no one has been able to take it from you without getting a few broken bones."

"Nah, Shanks gave me this. It used to be his, but he gave it to me when I made a promise. It's really important to me and I'm not going to risk it getting damaged before I can return it to him."

"Just who is Shanks?"

"He's awesome! He saved my life when I was just a kid. But he lost his arm because the car wreck tore it up pretty bad. The doctors couldn't fix it, so they amputated it."

"I see. Let's talk about something else. How about your friends?"

"They're the best! Zoro was my first ever friend and he gets so protective. But he's kind of stupid and gets lost real easy. Shishishishi, he says the building move to confuse him. Then there's Nami, she stole money from us, but that was because she was in trouble. She's really scary and I feel sorry for whoever marries her. Sanji is crazy because he wants to marry Nami, but he's an amazing cook. You guys should have him make the meals here, it'll make everyone happier. Usopp is great, he can see things from miles away, and his stories are awesome."

"And the others?"

"Chopper is our doctor. But he's really shy and hides behind things the wrong way. He's a lot of fun. Then there's Robin. She's really smart, and she kind of acts like a mom to us. She has weird humor, though. Franky joined us after her. He can make anything out of everything in just a few minutes. He made our base from scratch, and it's amazing! We call it the Thousand Sunny. We used to have another place, but Going Merry got burned down. That really upset Usopp since it was a place his friend gave to us. Brook was the last one to join us. He's our musician, and he's really good. He knows all the songs!"

"They sound like a lot of fun. I can't wait to meet them myself."

Coby stopped the tape then leaned back into the seat and glanced to his police officer roommate. "See what I mean?" he asked. "He may as well be in a playground."

"Why is someone like that in Impel Down?" Helmeppo inquired curiously.

"Destruction of private, public, and Government property, and he's a gang leader that everyone is scared enough of that they threw him and his friends into the same block as Eustass Kidd and the Surgeon of Death," he answered calmly.

"Sounds like you have your hands full." The blonde sighed dejectedly, running a hand through his hair. "Promise me something?"

"What?" Coby returned, blinking almost owlishly.

"Be careful around these guys."

 **Here is a line!**

"Psst! Torao! Psst! Hey, Torao! Are you awake?"

"Go to sleep, Strawhat-ya," Law groaned in annoyance.

"Shishishi! I can't!" Luffy snickered. "Hey, what do you think of these new guys?"

"The one from earlier seems okay," he reluctantly answered. The only reason he was even replying was because Strawhat Luffy has this habit to continue talking and repeating questions until he receives a response. "I don't much care for this new night guard."

"I give him three nights," Kidd threw in uncaringly.

"Two if someone didn't make a mess on Bepo and cause me to reveal my blade," Law growled at the redhead two cells away from him.

"Seriously? You're still pissed about that."

"Go to hell, Eustass-ya. Bepo is much more special than you realize. And you smeared semen all over his face."

"Dude, you have the thing watch us having sex. Okay? I can fuck all day long, but I seriously feel like I'm being judged when that damn bear is watching."

"He is judging."

Luffy snickered as he pushed himself from the bars then dropped onto the bed holding his still-awake blonde brother. "You didn't get to meet Coby today, Sabo," he informed. "I like him. He seems like a really good guy."

"You've always had a good judgement of people, so I'll just have to take your word for it," Sabo chuckled lightly, running a hand through Luffy's thick black hair. "Now, lay down and get some sleep. We may have some visitors tomorrow. At the least, we'll have one."

Luffy shivered then slipped under the blanket as fast as he could. "I don't wanna see Gramps tomorrow…"

Banging rang through the area, causing some of them to flinch from the sounds. "Shut up in there!"

"I really wish I still had my knife…" Law muttered, curling around Bepo.

 **Here the Chapter Ends**

 **So, everyone enjoying it so far? I kind of am. This is a whole new turn for me because I try to make my stories in the same universe, just with some things being different. Like a backstory or different lives, but generally the same 'verse. When I divert, I tend to screw up a lot.**

 **If I may say, I think that it isn't that bad. I'm slowly stepping out of comfort zones and trying new things and they're not turning out that bad. Leave me a review and let me know what you think!**

 **Also, I have been asked if Coby will be paired with anyone. I kind of want to, but even as the main character, he may not be paired with someone. The yaoi that I said would show up is mainly with the prisoners. If I was going to pair anyone up with Coby, it probably would be Helmeppo. Seriously, those two are so close in the anime that any fangirl can imagine it being there.**

 **But we shall see how this goes. He may stay single. He may end up with a prisoner. He may end up with his roommate. Maybe even a co-worker. But Coby is considered the main character with some side-glances to the others.**


	3. Chapter 3

**So Chapter Three. Meaning it is Visitor's Day. You guys are awesome and I'm glad you're enjoying this story so far. Like I said before, it's mainly an experiment. But that's also how 'The Emerald Rose' started out and look at it. It's complete with side stories and a sequel. My experiments tend to turn out pretty well, don't you think?**

 **Ah, well, let's get on with it. Shall we?**

 **Disclaimer: Do not own One Piece. I'm just borrowing them for a little while. I'll put them back later.**

 **Here the Chapter Starts**

Kaku was the first person he saw when he arrived in the block. The orange-haired guard was speaking with the two night guards, all three with grave expressions on their faces.

Coming up to the trio, he asked, "Is something wrong?"

Kaku sighed heavily, rubbing the back of his head. Looking to the other two, he told them, "Tell Lucci how last night went and he'll figure out what to do with Nero. We can't have someone like that around these guys."

"Got it," Fukuro accepted before he and Kumadori walked away, passing by Coby with a small nod in greeting.

"What happened last night?" Coby pressed.

"Nero is getting on their nerves and is acting like he's the one in charge of them instead of Lucci," Kaku explained with a tired sigh. "If he keeps that up, one of them is going to snap. The prisoners are already talking about how to get rid of him."

"Did he do something?"

"Tried getting forceful with some of them when it was time to return to their cells. Got a little frisky with the women. Franky punched him for that one, and Nero didn't like it one bit. Fukuro and Kumadori managed to stop him before he did something dumber. If he managed to hit Franky back, that would set off Strawhat severely. Then every time he heard talking, he started beating on the bars and yelling at them to shut up."

"He sounds like a piece of work," the younger commented, looking down to the empty area below. "Are we leaving them in the cells a while longer?"

"When Lucci gets here, we let them out," he explained. "If we tried without him, they tend to try something. They respect Lucci enough to not pull any crap when he's here, but it has to be known that he is here. They have to see him."

Coby nodded then understanding then reached down to the bag he was carrying. "So I read some of the files and listened to the tapes," he informed, pulling out a stack of manila folders, each with a small picture of the individual the folder named, paperclip holding it in place.

"Any questions?" Kaku asked, taking the stack.

"A few," Coby replied with a nod. "Is Strawhat always that carefree? He acts like he isn't in a prison."

"To him, this is just another adventure," Kaku chuckled lightly. "He gets into so much trouble, no one would guess he could be as carefree as he is. He has his friends and he has his brothers, and that's all he needs. No one hurts his friends, though."

"I guess I get it," the pink-haired guard said with a single shoulder shrug. "And Killer has amnesia?"

"Somewhat. You obviously heard the session. He woke up in the alley not knowing a single thing, name or location or family. No one ever put up posters of a missing child. He found Kidd about to starve to death and took him in. They're been inseparable since. He never did get any memories back, though. Eustass was the one to give him his name."

"And Shachi and Penguin, they're actually brothers?"

"Half brothers. Same father, different mothers, different homes. Orphaned when they were young. We still can't find any records of Penguin, which is the odd part."

"Then Trafalgar found them after their parents died, which would explain why they stick with him. But I still don't get why Penguin is so…" Coby trailed off, trying to figure out a way of saying the phrase without sounded obnoxious or condescending.

Seeing the look of concentration Coby was sporting, Kaku guessed, "Sexually attracted to Killer?"

"That's one way of putting it." He doesn't have a problem with the relationship, but it just seemed like an odd one to have.

Kaku chuckled, shaking his head. "Killer interests him. It's been asked about, but Penguin just shuts his mouth and smiles. So we don't really know why he's so attached to that man."

"Shachi has no problem with it. At all?"

"There was some fighting about it at first, but Penguin put a stop to it quick enough. Trafalgar just thought the whole thing was hilarious."

"Speaking of Trafalgar… he has a lot of notes in his file."

"Don't mention the death of his father, avoid mentioning his father if possible. Don't touch the bear. He doesn't respond to being ordered around so well. We actually got lucky yesterday. Keep sharp objects away from him. Try not to get into debates with him because he will screw up your mind." Kaku huffed, crossing his arms. "Trafalgar is a genius, and he's a doctor. It wouldn't bother people normally, but he's also a serial killer. All three combined into one human is a major threat. I doubt he's ever getting out of here."

"I would think someone like him would be put on death row," the younger said lowly.

"He was. His uncle paid enough money to get him off the row. We just haven't told the public that."

"He can do that?" Coby gasped in disbelief. Paying to have someone taken off death row? It shouldn't happen at all!

"His uncle has a lot of friends in very high places," Kaku muttered darkly. "We're expecting visitors today, and he never misses it. Stay away from him, Coby."

"Okay," he accepted, nodding his head then turned to Lucci as he approached, a scowl on the darker man's face. "He looks mad."

"Probably just finished with Nero," Kaku returned, tugging him back to the wall as Lucci passed by, Jyabura and Kalifa being him. "So far, they've been quiet," he informed the suited man.

"Good," Lucci accepted with a sharp nod. "Let us hope there will be no more incidents today. I was disappointed when I heard about yesterday, Kaku."

"Caught off guard," he explained.

"Never drop your guard in the first place, I trained you much better than that," Lucci pointed out as he opened the gate to the stairs.

Kaku lowered his head, accepting the scolding before following after the three. Coby, not given any orders otherwise, followed after him. The inmates were silently watching the five of them, Coby staying next to his teacher in the line up as Lucci stepped forth to address the prisoners.

"As you are aware, you will be receiving visitors today," he explained. "I do not want anymore incidents, especially while they are here. You will be on your best behavior and will limit your aggression."

"Then let us the fuck out of these cells so we can get rid of some energy first," Eustass snickered, arms draping between bars.

"Yeah, I want some breakfast!" Strawhat declared happily, looking like he was about to squeeze right between the bars in order to get to some food. "Hey, can we go outside today? We stayed inside all day yesterday! I wanna run around!"

"Calm down, Lu," the blonde in his cell told him, pulling the younger off the bars.

"I will see what can be done," Lucci told them. "Your cells will be opened in a moment, then you may head to the mess hall for breakfast. Afterwards, you will return here with the guards calmly. If I hear about anyone causing a problem, you will be locked in your cell for the rest of the day, thus missing any visitors you may have. Am I understood?"

"Quite clearly," Trafalgar drawled from his cell, his two men leaning against the wall near him. "Rest assured, Guard Captain-ya. We will be on our very best behavior."

 **Here is a line!**

As it turns out, the visitors can be as much of a handful as the inmates. One of the calmest among the visiting was a young woman speaking with Sabo. Coby managed to pick up her name, Koala. He has to admit, she's kind of cute, but off limits judging by how she and Sabo interacted with each other. Smitten, but no confession. Yet.

Perhaps she is waiting for him to be free of bars so that they may marry. A private ceremony on a beautiful beach with crystal clear water. Maybe he wants to declare his own love as well, but worries that she will recoil because he is locked away. A prisoner. A criminal. Fearing that she will not want him as much as he wants her.

…He really needs to lay off any romance novels he has around the apartment. Maybe he should get Helmeppo to help him lock the books up somewhere. Without him knowing where they are.

Eustass Kid and Killer have their own visitors. Other criminals as well, but nothing to the extent as the two inmates. Possibly drug possession or assault. Either way, they paid their time in prison and are just here to visit their friends. One was covered with barb-wire tattoos and kept his long blue hair in dreadlocks. He spoke the most. The other wore leather and fishnets, his hood over his head. He was the quiet one. Coby thinks he heard the redhead call the pair 'Heat' and 'Wire', but he can only guess which is which.

He knew exactly when Garp arrived as well. Sabo and Luffy both leapt to their feet and started running, Garp soon chasing after them all over the room. He was yelling all sorts of things at the brothers, demanding to know where Ace is, and just being his usual boisterous self. Coby smiled, missing the old man and his antics. That has to be where Strawhat got it. Maybe he'll be able to speak with Garp before the retired marine leaves.

Franky was being visited by a lean man with blue hair carrying a little white mouse in his breast pocket. The two did not seem to get along too well, but at least they weren't fighting. Vinsmoke Sanji, on the other hand, was being royally chewed out by an older man with a horizontal beard and a peg leg. The two were actually trying to exchange blows and yelling insults at each other. Roronoa Zoro looked like he did not want his visitor at all, a young girl with pink hair and wearing a lolita dress. Next to her was an older man, his appearance firm but his voice low. Brook was speaking with the man, talking swords of all things.

Chopper was talking with Doctor Hiriluk and Kureha, the prison psychiatrists. Apparently, Chopper has no one outside the gang to visit him, and the two doctors got pretty attached to the young boy. Robin was with him, keeping a close watch. Her visitors were nonexistent as well. Nami was speaking with a tanned-skinned woman a little older than herself, her hair a bright periwinkle. The two were smiling to each other and chatting like they aren't in the middle of a prison. Usopp has a visitor as well, one that Coby was surprised to see he had, also is the second calmest person visiting. A young woman dressed in fine clothing, her skin pale and her hair a light blonde. He was telling her stories that caused her to giggle and laugh.

Looking over to Trafalgar and his group, he was a little surprised by his visitor. A tall man with golden hair and wearing sunglasses (inside a building?), most of his tall form covered by a thick pink coat made of feathers. His clothing was just as bright.

Trafalgar was sitting next to him, pressing against his side and speaking lowly while playing with the feathers of the man's sleeve. Surprisingly enough, he allowed the blonde to hold onto his precious bear, scowling when the stain was indicated. Penguin and Shachi stuck close by, apparently without their own personal visitors like some of the others. This did not seem to bother them.

"The usual crowd," Jyabura commented, leaning against the railing by Coby. "Though I'm surprised those two even came."

"The ones with Eustass?" Coby inquired.

"Yeah. They just got released from a lesser prison a couple months ago, then come here to see their boss and SIC? That's loyalty," the older explained with a nod.

"What about him?" the pink-haired guard inquired, nudging his head towards Trafalgar and who he assumed to be his uncle.

"Donquixote Doflamingo," Kaku answered this time. "Trafalgar's uncle. He is the worst. Police in his pocket. Mafia pays him for protection, I hear. He has enough power, money, and charisma to stay out of prison." Looking down to Coby, he advised, "Try not to get caught in a conversation with him. Everything ends up in his favor."

"Is that why everyone thinks Trafalgar became the Surgeon? Because of that man?"

"We're pretty sure he had a hand in it, or at least, he encouraged it and helped move Trafalgar around when police were closing in. I think this guy has 'died' about three times just to get away from police. Someone always managed to find something about the bodies that are missing what Trafalgar has or have something he doesn't."

"Most people, us especially, believe that Doflamingo groomed Trafalgar into being the Surgeon after his brother's murder," Jyabura commented lowly, ducking towards Coby as though he did not wish for the words to be overheard. "The kid lost his whole family, then his adopted father. That does things to a mind. Doflamingo took his shattered head and put the pieces back together, only he put them into the form of a serial killer."

"So Donquixote Rocinante," Coby said softly. "He was murdered?"

"Three days after Trafalgar graduated from med school," Kaku explained. "It was a gang shooting. Rocinante, even though he was off duty, was already on the scene and tried to keep as many people as he could calm. When he tried to stop the shooting, he was hit multiple times."

"Trafalgar was the doctor they called into surgery to help him," Jyabura added on. "They didn't know the relation between the two of them. So imagine this: You just graduated from med school as the top dog. Then three days later, the man that took you in without any obligation to do so beyond his own kind heart is brought into your emergency room."

"He did try," the other informed with a sad sigh. "He hates thinking about it, which was why mentioning his father is a bad idea. The one life he wanted to save slipped right through his fingers." He glanced down to Coby. "It was discovered that his first victims as the Surgeon of Death were the gang members that were involved with the shooting. We don't know how he found them, but we speculate."

"I heard the sessions," Coby pointed out. "None of them mention what happened. He always got…upset."

"Upset?!" Jyabura laughed. "We've had to sedate him to take him from the room at least six times."

"Four," Kaku corrected calmly.

The youngest of the trio looked over to Trafalgar, watching the man identified as his uncle hand Bepo back over to the doctor. Trafalgar took it and hugged the bear close to his chest, then pulled his uncle's arm to him as well. He tilted his head back with a smirk before giving the tall blonde a small kiss.

"Wow," Coby said with wide eyes.

"Yep, that happens," Kaku informed, patting the other on the back. "Broken minds leave all kinds of doors open for suggestions. Who knows how many Doflamingo walked through with that one."

 **Here is a line!**

"If the three of you just did what I told you, then you wouldn't be locked up in here!" Garp lectured to the two young men he managed to catch. After a couple Fists of Love, he managed to sit them down and give them their usual lecturing chew out.

Sabo looked over to his youngest brother, youngest because the blonde is older than Ace no matter what the pyromaniac says. Luffy, as usual, was sulking and ignoring every word Garp was spouting. He wished he could block out the world like the younger raven does.

"Are either of you paying attention?!" Garp yelled, fists raised in preparation for another Fist of Love assault.

"Of course, sir!" Sabo replied quickly, wanting to avoid the attack. Blinking, he suddenly came up with an idea to get Garp off their backs long enough for him and Luffy to get away. Hopefully until the older man leaves. "Hey, Gramps, did you just so happen to train a young man named Coby?"

"Coby?" Garp repeated, hands lowering as he looked up in thought. "Yeah, I did. Good kid, good head on his shoulders. Kind of a scrawny runt when I first saw him, but as soon as I got a hold of him, he became one of my best pupils. Him and his friend Helmeppo, of course."

"Wow, it is such a small world!" the blonde laughed, straightening up just enough to bring Garp's full and curious attention to him. "Luffy tells me that a new guard joined the block yesterday. And his name is Coby. And he mentioned that you trained him. What are the chances?"

"You don't say!" the older man exclaimed before laughing loudly. "I was wondering what happened with that kid since Helmeppo joined the police force! Ha-ha! So, where is he? I'd like to say hello!"

"Guards stay up there when we're out," Sabo explained, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder to the catwalk.

Garp blinked them looked up, grinning when he spotted the familiar pink hair of his once-student. "Coby, my boy! Get your ass down here and greet me!"

"Lu! Run!" Sabo ordered, shoving the younger to get him moving. The pair scrambled to their feet and took off as fast as they could, ignoring Garp yelling after them. Turning his head to look to the giggling woman he was speaking with earlier, Sabo yelled out, "Sorry, Koala! Gotta run!"

"What?! You little brats! Get back here!" Garp roared, chasing after the pair once more.

"Noisy bunch, aren't they?" Wire commented, watching the two younger men run by soon followed by their grandfather figure.

"Tch, no wonder Strawhat is so damn loud," Kidd scoffed uncaringly. "How are things back home?"

"Some people tried to move in on us," the blue-haired man explained. "When they heard you got sent here, they thought they could push us out of our territory."

"Show them who's boss?" the redhead asked.

"Of course we did," Heat told him, his eyes still looking over the new injuries on their leader's face. It looks fresh, done within the last twenty-four hours. But Kidd had yet to say anything about it and he wasn't sure if he wanted to talk about it either.

"Good," Kidd chuckled, grinning wildly. "Keep those punks out. If you have to kill them then do it." He held a hand out, fingers curling in twice. "Got any cigarettes?"

A package flew through the air, caught by Killer's quick reflexes before it could hit the bright target known as Kidd's head. "Looks like Trafalgar did," the blonde noted, passing the package over. Kidd took one from the box then threw it back.

It wasn't Law that caught it, though, but the tall blonde man whose lap the doctor was currently sitting on. His grin stretched across his face, barely showing his gums. "Fuffuffuf, interesting companions you have, Law," he commented, looking down to the tattooed prisoner.

"Eustass-ya is enough to help me pass the time," Law stated, pulling one side of the coat over him partially. "I really think you'd like him, Doffy. He could make an interesting member of the Family."

"How is he at following orders?" Doflamingo inquired.

"About as good as me."

The taller man released a bark of laughter. Getting Law to follow orders was like asking lava to stop destroying whatever it touched. If the tattooed doctor was going to do anything, it would be by his own thought process or originally his idea with others suggesting tactics. He could drive Trebol up the wall with his blatant disobedience, but it was one thing Doflamingo enjoyed about the younger man.

It almost reminded him of Rocinante. His little brother, forever gone. He may have disliked the idea of his last blood relation being on the police force, it's suicidal and where he can't keep an eye on him, but he still supported him however he could. Then to find out he was murdered, shot while trying to defend people too stupid to think for themselves that they should duck or get behind something a bullet can't pass through.

When he got the call, he nearly killed the messenger until he heard which doctor was working on him. He knew Law was fragile when it comes to family. He was hesitant to even accept Roci as his adopted father, fearing that he would be snatched away as quickly as he arrived.

And just like he thought, Law was unresponsive to anyone that tried for his attention, staring at his blood coated hands with tears streaming down his face. Foolish nurses and doctors thought it was just the shock of losing a patient so soon after starting at an ER. As soon as Doflamingo arrived, he pulled his nephew to him and held him tightly, not caring that his deceased brother's blood was soon staining his clothes. Law clung to him like a lifeline, letting out a screaming cry of agony.

He did what he could for Law, housing him and offering a shoulder whenever the younger man needed it. A bed when he wanted. A lover to chase away his emptiness. Despite all that, Law really wasn't getting any better. So Doffy had the bright idea of hunting down the bastards that were responsible for the shooting that prematurely ended his brother's life.

Even when he had his own hands on them, he fought back the urge to kill them. To shred them to pieces and scatter their remains for police to find one at a time and try to put together. Like a gory puzzle. But he held it back. Law needed it more than him.

Was he responsible for Law becoming the Surgeon of Death? Yes. Will he ever admit it? Probably, if the circumstances were right. Did he sit back and laugh while watching his adopted nephew cut into screaming men, surgically removing their hearts before their dying eyes? Of course he did.

"You're doing it again," Law accused, poking his cheek.

"Doing what?" the blonde asked playfully.

"Smiling that creepy smile, the one that means people are about to get hurt," he pointed out.

"You're already freaking out some of the guards," Shachi informed, nodding his head towards a square-nosed guard watching him with narrow eyes. "Kaku hasn't taken his eyes off you since you walked in."

"Neither has their superior, Lucci," Penguin added, turning slightly towards the blonde. "And he's not one you can bully, bribe, coax, or bargain with. He _lets_ us have certain freedoms."

"But he can take those freedoms away in an instant," Law finished, hugging Bepo close to his chest. He could feel the hard items Doflamingo slipped into the bear without anyone noticing. He never could figure out how the man managed to hide things in the bear, but it was useful. He knew what one item was automatically, something he asked for concerning one of his men. The other one, a blade. He has to keep a better hold of his temper or risk losing this one, too.

"He may be a hard-ass, but his superiors are corruptible," Doflamingo chuckled.

"Magellan isn't, but Hannyabal might be," Shachi pointed out, eyes scanning over the others in the room. The only thing of note was that Strawhat and his older brother were caught by their grandfather again.

"Higher than even them," the blonde corrected. "They're easily persuaded."

"You mean the ones you bribed to get me off death row?" the doctor inquired. "How about getting me and my men out of here completely?"

"They won't accept that because then the public will hate them and then they will get kicked out of their seats, lose their power, and someone new takes their place. Don't worry so much, Law."

"Who said I was worried?" he scoffed in annoyance, waving Bepo's arms around childishly. "I know you have things handled."

 **Here is a line!**

When the time was up, visitors slowly left the area where they met their friends and loved ones. The last to leave the area was Doflamingo, who Trafalgar simply refused to release hold of. Shachi and Penguin had to hold Bepo hostage in order to distract him, though the tall blonde thought the whole scenario was hilarious.

"Coby, my boy!" Garp yelled, causing the pink-haired guard to jump in surprise. Kaku chuckled at him, swatting the back of his head in a silent reminder to always keep his guard up. "How are you?"

"Admiral Garp, good to see you again, sir," Coby greeted in return, holding his hand out.

Garp grabbed the hand but pulled the young guard to him, hugging him tightly. "No need for formalities between us!" the man laughed. "Where's that other scrawny runt? He doing okay?"

"Yeah, Helmeppo's fine," he replied with a nod as he was released from the bear hug. "We're actually roommates until we can afford living on our own. He's with the police. He might appreciate you dropping in for a visit."

"I might just do that." Garp looked over the inmates that were still lounging about the room, unable to go anywhere without the guards of their block. "How long have you been here?"

"Just started yesterday."

"Good, good." He sighed heavily, rubbing at his forehead. "Coby, I have a request of you."

Coby stood at attention. "Sir!"

"None of that, now." The young guard relaxed. "Just…keep an eye on my grandsons. They're a handful and a mischievous lot, but they are mine. I would appreciate it greatly if you could make sure they behave themselves, especially once Ace gets out of Isolation. He won't be right in the head for a while." Garp sighed heavily, crossing his arms while shaking his head. "Some poor souls are not meant to be alone."

Coby blinked at him curiously then glanced down to the inmates that were still waiting to be escorted to their block. He watched Luffy cling to his blonde brother, as well as stay close to the rest of his gang. Even Sabo was sticking close, watching over the younger mostly. Now that he was really looking, it seemed that keeping them from each other truly was the cruelest punishment one could deliver concerning them. It made him wonder just what the mysterious third brother will be like when he comes out of Isolation.

"Also, Coby," Garp continued. "These others, they're more dangerous than you can ever expect them to be. Watch yourself. Alright?"

He nodded in response. "I will."

 **Here the Chapter Ends**

 **Brief as it was, as got Coby and Garp. We also got Doffy. And we got a little more backstory on some of the inmates. To be honest, as slow as I am with this story, I think it's going quite well. I am trying to write more chapters ahead, but then I get so eager to post that I keep adding on until I have another chapter finished.**

 **This isn't like my more popular stories when I'm ten chapters ahead of everyone else and just have a scheduled update for them. Those, I can't stop working on.**

 **Let me know what you guys think! ^^**


	4. Chapter 4

**Here we are again! Ace will show up in this chapter! ^^ Yay! And maybe some more background with the others. We'll see how that goes.**

 **Disclaimer: I am only borrowing the characters of One Piece. I promise, I will give them back once I'm done.**

 **Here the Chapter Starts**

The sheer joy and excitement down below was almost contagious. Monkey D Luffy was running around with too much energy to be natural, jumping all over the place and being much louder than his usual boisterous self. Sabo had to grab him several time in order to attempt calming him, only for the cycle to start all over again. When he got close enough, Eustass would try to take a swing at him only for the young raven to dodge. If Coby didn't know any better, he would think Strawhat was made of rubber.

"Nose like a bloodhound, that one," Kaku chuckled softly with a shrug of his shoulder.

Despite it being his third day on the job, he still has to stick to the older guard until Lucci deems him ready to stand at his own post by himself and judge occurrences properly. His reactions. How he handles the inmates. Everything must be done a certain way or chaos will reign.

"What do you mean?" Coby asked curiously, though kept his eyes on the ruckus down below.

"They're bringing Portgas back today," he replied before they heard a door open. Coby, seeing that Kaku was keeping an eye on the prisoners, looked over.

Kalifa and Jyabura were escorting a young man with sun-kissed skin and dark raven hair, freckles scattered across his cheeks. Hanging by a tie around his neck was an orange cowboy hat, Coby thought he saw a couple of blue buttons on it though wasn't sure. Large red beads were around his neck as well. The only mark he could see on the man was a tattoo running down his arm spelling ASCE with the 'S' crossed out.

As the pair brought the man to the gate, all fell silent down below. Coby looked down to see everyone watching carefully, Sabo holding Luffy back. The younger was still excited enough to try and struggle out of the blonde's arms but was still held firmly in place. Jyabura took the lead down the stairs, Kalifa bringing up the rear. Once at the bottom, the man held his bound wrists out for Jyabura to unlock the cuffs. When he was free of the metal, he rubbed his wrists and stepped back, giving the two guards enough room to get back up the stairs without a problem.

"ACE!" Luffy cried out, flinging himself onto the other man and clinging to the older raven. Much calmer, the blonde brother approached, wrapping his arms around the two raven comfortingly.

"Yo, Portgas! Set anyone on fire in Solitary?!" Eustass barked out with a laugh.

Jyabura and Kalifa came back up the steps safely, closing the gate behind them. Nodding to each other, Kalifa walked off while Jyabura approached them. "Any problems bringing him back?" Kaku inquired.

"No, he behaved," Jyabura shrugged off. "Hasn't said a word except ask us how his brothers were."

"Well, small miracles," Kaku sighed gently, his shoulder shrugging.

Coby watched the groups below, observing Strawhat drag Portgas over to his group of friends. They greeted him rather calmly, a pat on the back or a hug from the women. Luffy clung to him like they were connected with super glue, refusing to release his hold. Sabo simply patted Luffy on the back and stood next to his brothers.

"We need to keep a closer eye on them," Kaku suddenly warned him, patting his shoulder lightly. "They get to go out to the yard today. Keeping them cooped up in here will result in a revolt."

"This is where you really get tested, kid," Jyabura added on with a sly grin. "Guarding the yard is one of the toughest parts of the job. They have more space and we're not a floor above them. We're right there with them and there's nothing between them and us except for a wire fence."

"And they can do a lot of damage as soon as they think our guard is down," the other finished darkly, crossing his arms.

Coby wasn't sure what to think of Kaku's shift in mood. It was like he was remembering a nightmare, his eyes dark and lips a tight line instead of the usual friendly smile he often offered. "Have you had a bad experience in the yard?" he asked before he could stop himself.

The lips got tighter, pressing into a firm line as the man tensed. "You can say that," he muttered lowly.

Coby spotted Jyabura trying to get his attention, waving his hand around before shaking his head and mouthing 'drop it'. He nodded, accepting that most guards would have horror stories they don't wish to relive. It was surprising to see Kaku suddenly so serious and withdrawn when he's been so open and friendly since the younger's first day. While he was curious, he won't press it.

 **Here is a line!**

Watching over the inmates from the safety of the catwalks above was one thing. Watching over them on the ground with only a fence between them was another entirely, just like Jyabura warned him.

For the most part, the inmates were chatting with various others groups, playing basketball, or sitting at some nearby tables playing card games and smoking. It looked more like they were playing poker for cigarettes instead of money. Mostly, everyone was minding their own business, no caring that there are a few women among them. In fact, from Coby's observations, they were avoiding the women.

"Hey! Coby!" someone called out his name happily before Strawhat was suddenly in front of him, fingers clenching the around the wires of the fence as the raven beamed at him. "They already got you out here? Wow, Pigeon Guy likes you! Shishishi!"

"Um…" Coby wasn't entirely sure if it was okay for him to just talk with one of the prisoners. Looking around, he spotted Kaku leaning against the brick wall of the prison, as far from the fence as possible. Jyabura was walking up and down on side of the yard while Kalifa sat patiently at the side opposite of him. There are, of course, other guards because of the various criminals running around, but Coby never formally met any of them so he did not know any of their names. If anything happens, then they need to be able to control the crowd.

"What's wrong, short stuff?" another asked, Portgas appearing next to Luffy. "Afraid we'll get you into trouble?"

"I don't know if I'm even allowed to talk to you guys," Coby told him.

Sabo showed up next at Luffy's other side, looking him up and down before smiling softly. "I see the old man did a good job shaping you up," he commented. "I bet you were a scrawny little kid afraid of the world."

"You don't know me," Coby scolded in irritation.

"No way, the old man got a hold of you?" Portgas chuckled. "I didn't believe these two at first. Shows me." With a huge grin, he introduced himself. "Nice to meet you. The name's Portgas D Ace."

"He already knows, Ace," Luffy pointed out as he lifted himself up enough to plant his feet against the fence. "I heard Pigeon Guy tell him all our names."

"Hey, you can't do that!" the pink-haired guard exclaimed.

"Why not?" Luffy asked curiously, his head tilting sideways as he blinked owlishly.

"It's against the rules!"

"Rules?" Portgas scoffed with a roll of his eyes.

"In case you haven't noticed, we're locked up because we broke the 'rules'," Sabo explained. "So we don't really care for the rules of this place. The only reason we even behave is because none of us can take down Lucci. And if he goes down, then there's still the rest of the prison to go through, more guards, and guard captains. Then there are the wardens. So yeah, we behave enough to not piss off anyone we don't need to."

"I bet we could kick all their asses if we really tried," Luffy commented, swinging on the fence.

"Just get down!" Coby ordered, placing a hand on his baton as he stepped forward. So far, he has not had to use force on any of the inmates, but that didn't mean he wouldn't if he has to. He just doesn't want to if they would just listen.

"Come on, Lu, you're making him nervous," Portgas said, grabbing Strawhat by the back of his shirt and yanking him off the fence.

Luffy fell to the ground, landing on his back with an 'oof!' before snapping back up and rubbing the back of his head with a short laugh. "You know what?" he suddenly asked, grinning at Coby. "You seem like a nice guy. If you need help, let me know."

"Uh-oh, Luffy's adopted another one," Sabo chuckled softly.

"Well then, I'm going to go find Marco and let him know that I am not some drooling imbecile in a corner," Portgas laughed as he turned and walked off. "Later, squirt!"

"Who are you calling a squirt?!" Coby shouted after him, earning another laugh.

"Shishishi, Ace likes you, too!" Luffy declared with a bright grin.

Coby blinked in surprise before giving the raven a small smile. "I take it that's a good thing," he commented.

"Just means that you have quite a few of us ready to help you out if anyone else gives you a hard time," Sabo informed him. "Nice to officially meet you, Coby. Hope we can talk again. Let's go, Luffy. Kaku is starting to get a bit twitchy."

Curious, Coby sent a quick glance over to Kaku. The long-nosed guard was watching their interaction closely with a dark gaze, his hand resting on the handle of his baton. He looked ready to spring into action at the drop of a pin. It was a look Coby found off on the guard, so used to his friendly attitude. What happened to him?

"Let's talk later, okay, Coby," Luffy decided as he pushed himself off the fence then ran back to his group. Sabo followed after him with a slow shake of his head and a wave over his shoulder to the guard.

 **Here is a line!**

"Looks like Strawhat-ya claims another one," Law commented as he turned back to his men, Bepo held tightly in his arms. "I wonder how that will play out."

"Not well," Shachi sighed lowly.

"Right, normally it's okay with others, but that kid's a guard," Penguin added on, crossing his arms. "It will only bite him in the ass later."

"Kind of like you and Killer?" Shachi threw at the other.

"Back off, I know what I want and I know he wants me, too. Deal with it."

"The both of you, knock it off," Law ordered as he got to his feet. "We probably should inform Eustass-ya and Killer-ya about this development." He started chuckling lightly, smile stretching across his lips. "But why ruin such a fun surprise?"

"We don't really have to worry about that kid much, anyway," Penguin pointed out. "We have one in particular to concern ourselves with. Blueno was back last night, late but back, so he'll be back tonight. That will make things a bit harder."

"We just need to sit and be patient," the Surgeon sighed happily, holding Bepo high into the air and looking into the glass eyes. "I am so glad to have you with me. We're going to have some fun tonight."

 **Here is a line!**

"Coby, come here a minute," Kaku called him as he started for the locker room to change into his casual wear and head home. He hoped it wouldn't take too long or Helmeppo might think the criminals got loose and killed him.

Coming up to the other guard, he noticed a broad man with hair in the shape of horns, looking down at him blandly. "Yeah?" he replied.

"Blueno, Coby," Kaku introduced. "Coby, Blueno. He's kind of the one in charge of the night crew. Or more like, he's the hardest one to knock down so the inmates don't try anything."

"Kaku says you're learning fast," Blueno announced lowly. "Good thing. You have to learn fast with these guys." Looking to Kaku, he nodded before turning and walked away.

"Not a man of many words," Kaku informed him calmly. "By the way, I wanted to talk to you about earlier."

"You mean in the yard when Strawhat and his brothers came over," Coby murmured, lowering his head.

"You got lucky it was just them," the older guard scolded. "If that was Eustass coming at you, or Trafalgar, or any of the other inmates in the yard at the time, getting as close as you did could have been fatal. We've had some of the staff sent to the hospital because they got too close to the fence near a dangerous prisoner." He sighed, calming himself with a deep inhale before continuing a little softer. "You're still new and, like it or not, you're still a kid to us. And you're easy prey to them. Just be more careful, alright?"

Nodding, Coby accepted the scolding as well as made a silent promise. He hears something along the same lines every time he goes home, Helmeppo still paranoid that one of the inmates is going to grab him and snap his neck before anyone could defend him.

Smiling, Kaku patted his head. "Alright, get going. I make Lucci wait any longer and he'll tan my hide."

"Make him wait? Do you two live together?" Coby asked as he followed after the older guard out the door.

"Lucci and I are pretty close, he kind of took me in when we were in training together, despite being just a few years older," Kaku explained. "I never had anyone to look up to and no one to look after me. He became that someone. And half the time, I think he's training me up to match him so that he can quit worrying about me." Shaking his head, he grinned to the younger guard. "Go on. Get plenty of rest tonight. I feel like tomorrow is going to be a long day."

Coby nodded in acceptance, but looked over as the rest of the night guards went towards the cellblock. The only one he didn't recognize was a lean man with a mean look on his face. He figured that one was Nero, the trouble-making night guard that is driving the rest of them up the wall. A shiver ran up his spine as the man disappeared through the door, but the pink-haired guard brushed it off.

 **Here is a line**

"So something weird happened," Coby admitted as he and Helmeppo were lounging in the living room, the television showing an old black-and-white movie that was hardly holding their interest.

"What?" the blonde inquired curiously.

"Well, Garp's grandsons came over to talk to me when they were out in the yard," he started. "They didn't seem so bad, but the youngest, Luffy… Well, the other two said that he was 'adopting' me."

Helmeppo shrugged. "Maybe he's like Garp," he offered as an explanation. "Remember how he was? We were just two runty brats with nowhere to go and the easiest to pick on. He 'adopted' us and now, well, here we are."

"Yeah, but I kind of wonder," Coby went on, bringing a knee up to rest his chin on that. "Luffy also said that Ace likes me, then Sabo said that if I needed help, they'll help me."

"That's reassuring," the blonde sighed in relief. "To be honest, with the dangerous criminals you're looking over, I was pretty worried about you. I even looked up old case files on some of them. Let me tell you, getting on their bad side is a death wish."

"Bring any home?" Coby pressed, stretching across Helmeppo's lap to the stack of files at the end table. "That them?"

"No, those are for a current assignment," the blonde denied, pushing Coby off of him and onto the floor. "Stop being so pushy."

"What is your assignment?" the younger asked curiously, climbing back onto the couch. "Nothing too bad, I hope."

"Don't know how bad it is going to be," Helmeppo sighed lowly, shaking his head while running a hand through his hair. "There's a new group in town, and from what we can tell, the leader of this group was a part of the Whitebeard Family. The old man is getting restless, too. We've had suspicious people coming into town, but we haven't made any arrests because none of them are doing anything illegal." Inhaling deeply, the blonde leaned back, tilting his head as far back as possible to stare up at the ceiling. "This could be a lot worse than we expect it to be."

"You're thinking they're related to Whitebeard in some way," Coby assessed, rubbing his chin in thought. "Kaku did tell me before they everyone at the prison is fully expecting Whitebeard to do something. We have two of his commanders locked up there, his first and second."

"Think they'll try to break them out?" the blonde asked cautiously.

Shaking his head, Coby sighed. "I don't know. Probably. Wouldn't hurt to have some extra eyes and ears out there. I'll make sure to tell Lucci so that he can alert the rest of the guards for suspicious activity."

"Just… I know I say this a lot, Coby, but if things get bad, you are going to get hurt or maybe even killed," Helmeppo pointed out, dropping a hand onto Coby's shoulder. "Try to be careful."

Nodding in response, Coby gave his roommate a r4eassuring smile. "I'll try."

 **Here is a line!**

Penguin groaned as he curled into a tighter ball, Shachi sitting next to his half-sibling and rubbing his back. Law was standing by the bars, clutching Bepo to his torso tightly. "Hello?" he called out. "There a guard nearby?" He faintly heard a sound from Kidd's cell, snores from Strawhat and his gang, and the deep snores of the older brothers.

"What the hell do you want?" one of the guards sneered at him, stepping close to the cell.

Another groan slipped out of Penguin, his form shivering.

"He's sick," Law pointed out, nudging his head to his cellmate. "Possibly the flu. In which case, he requires medication or everyone, guard and prisoner, gets it. The last thing you would want here is an Influenza outbreak, so I suggest taking him to medical to be looked over."

"Or just leave him and let all of you bastards get sick," the guard, the hated Nero, snickered at them. "He can wait until the morning."

With a heave, Penguin pushed off of the bed, expelling his stomach's contents onto the floor into a disgusting pile of half-digested food and bile. "Pen!" Shachi exclaimed, dropping to the floor by him and rubbing his back.

Law stared curiously. Penguin was supposed to act sick, but that was too much to be convincing. Maybe he really is sick. Or he's… "Damn it, just get him out of here and treated!" Law snapped.

"That's disgusting," Nero scoffed as Penguin vomited again.

"He's sick, as you can very well see," Law snarled, hitting the bars in warning.

"Hey, back off!" the guard warned, striking the steel bars with his baton.

"What's going on down here?" another asked, causing Law to swear under his breath. So much for the plan, but if Penguin is really sick, that is more important than getting rid of a guard. Blueno approached the cell as the others were stirring awake from the noise.

"Penguin is sick," Law informed the larger night guard. "This bastard refuses to take him to medical. Look at him, his stomach's empty but he's dry-heaving still!" He waved a hand towards the hunched over form of Penguin, his body trembling as he continue to push anything out of his stomach, but nothing other than drool dripping from his mouth was coming out as he coughed harshly.

Blueno looked over them, suspecting that these three were originally planning something but it got out of hand. "Alright, we'll take him," he said, waving to Law with a silent signal to back up. The man stepped to the door, unlocking it easily and leaving the door open as he went over to Penguin.

"Shachi," the prisoner whimpered, reaching for his half-brother. "Shachi, no!"

"It'll be alright, Pen," Shachi reassured with a shaky smile, hand weakly grasping the flailing hand only for the other to be easily pulled away. "You'll be okay."

"Law, please! I don't want to go! Just treat me here!" Penguin protested, weakly struggling in Blueno's grasp.

"I can't," Law regretfully told him. "I don't have what I need."

"What the hell is going on over there?" Kidd's groggy voice reached to their ears.

"Penguin?" Killer came next. "Hey, what's happening? Hey!" A slam, hands against bars.

"I'm fine! I'm not sick! Just let me go! No!" Penguin protested loudly, legs kicking around until Kumadori came down and pricked his skin with a needle. "Stop it! I'm not sick! I don't need to go to Medical! Just put me back! Law! Shachi!"

Law's grip on Bepo tightened, his forehead to the wall as his eyes screwed shut. He would often insist to treat his own men, but this late at night with only a night crew to guard, they wouldn't let him out. Not a dangerous murderer like him. They would want at least ten guards in the hall and six inside Medical to make sure he didn't pull anything. Without those numbers, they won't let him.

Shachi pressed against his back, tucking his face into the tanned skin of his leader. "They're going to find out now," he whispered lowly, wrapping his arms around Law to keep himself from charging out of the cell.

"All we can do is hope for the best," Law told him lowly then punched the wall. "Damn it… Damn it!"

 **Here the Chapter Ends**

 **A little shorter than usual, but I like building up suspense. Let me put it this way, here is a little hint. It has been foreshadowed here and there, very briefly. Go reread over the chapters and see if you can figure something out. And let me know what your theories are.**

 **It's always fun reading theories. Sometimes they're right, sometimes they're wrong, and sometimes they're something I never even thought about. It's really fascinating how people react or what they think is going on, and I love reading them.**

 **I'll see you guys next time! Maybe the next chapter will come out sooner. Maybe. No promises.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, I'll stop being mean. You guys can know what happened to Penguin now. And it'll be a great bonding moment! ^^ Had this running through my head the night after I posted the previous chapter. Gotta write it, gotta write it!**

 **Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece. I'm just playing with them for right now.**

 **Here the Chapter Starts**

"Coby!"

As soon as he was punched in, his name was called. Turning around, he spotted Kaku waving at him, signaling him to head his way. Curious, the pink-haired guard went to his lead, managing to avoid the sneering night guard that was muttering darkly under his breath.

"Don't mind Nero," Kaku told him once he was at the older guard's side. "He just got a royal chew out from Lucci and is sulking."

"What about?" Coby inquired curiously.

Nudging his head down the hall, he said, "Walk with me for a minute." Unsure what else he should do at the moment, he obliged the other, following him as they headed towards medical, if the signs on the walls were any indication. "Last night, Trafalgar called out for a guard. Nero was the one that came, even though he's inexperienced enough that he should stay upstairs like you do with me. One of his cellmates was sick, puking all over the floor. Nero was refusing to take the poor guy to Medical, saying he could last until the morning."

"What?! But what if it was contagious?!" Coby exclaimed angrily, in disbelief that another would even do such a thing, prison or no.

"Thankfully, it wasn't," Kaku mumbled before clearing his throat and continuing on. "Lucci gave him the most royal chew-out I have ever seen from him because of it. Let me tell you, I've been living with that man for six years, working with him for almost as long, and I know how collected he can be better than most. He was not happy one bit over last night. Anyway, Blueno got to the cell and took Penguin out. Trafalgar and Shachi were worried enough that they let him, didn't try anything."

"So what's wrong with him?" the younger asked, still waiting for that bit of information. "Was it food poisoning?"

"With Vinsmoke as the cook, I doubt any of the inmates will ever get food poisoning," he replied, shaking his head. "No, this is a lot more serious. And it would explain a lot about Penguin that has always been a mystery. He always wants Trafalgar to treat him when he's hurt or sick, and he always throws fits when we attempt body searches. He had to be sedated last night when they were bringing him to Medical. Night crew is too small to handle Trafalgar if he decides he wants to act up."

They turned a corner and spotted Lucci standing in front of the double doors, hand on his forehead and his eyes closed with his lips in a tight line. His eyes snapped open, focusing on the duo before lowering his hand and looking straight at Coby. "I will assume I do not need to give you the same lecture as that imbecile concerning the health risks of leaving ill inmates in their cells," he said sternly.

"No, sir," Coby assured with a sharp nod. "I know that sick inmates need to be moved to medical as soon as possible or risk everyone's health."

"Good," Lucci accepted then looked to Kaku. "He has yet to be fully discharged, but when he is, take him back to the block."

"Understood," Kaku replied with a nod. Seeing the quirked brow of the other, he sighed lowly, rubbing the back of his head. "I'm just… How did we miss this?"

"This changes nothing, but try to get them contraceptives or it may happen again," Lucci advised. "I doubt simply telling them 'no' will be enough."

Contraceptives? Why would the inmates need birth control? As far as he was aware, the women weren't active and it's not like men could get pregnant. "Um, sir?" Coby hesitantly called. "What happened last night?"

"We made a surprising discovering concerning one of the prisoners," Lucci explained. "Penguin is, in fact, a woman. When Trafalgar was questioned about it, he informed us that Penguin is transgender and that he has been on medication to lower his estrogen hormones while increasing his testosterone. We do not know where he has been getting the medication since we do not have any in stock."

"Probably something his uncle smuggles in for them," Kaku offered.

"Possible. They have gone through great deals to hide this from us."

Coby half listened as Lucci and Kaku continued speaking, looking through the glass window into the medical ward. Curled up on one of the beds was Penguin, chin on his knees and glaring at a wall. Casting a quick glance to the other two, he slipped into the room, doubting that he was unnoticed but they were allowing it. Of course, if Penguin does try anything, Lucci is right there.

It was odd seeing the prisoner without his (or her) usual hat, platinum blonde hair that looked silver under the fluorescence and dark blue eyes shifting to look to him. Penguin scowled at him, turning his head away as the guard sat on the bed, not entirely sure what he was doing. They were silent for a moment before Coby looked towards the door, noticing the other two watching him, but Lucci was holding Kaku back.

He wasn't sure what he was going to say. Why he came in. But his mouth opened and the words started pouring out. "When I was a kid, a woman took me into her group. Mainly to use as her punching bag or to stroke her ego when she needed it. She was a huge woman, over three hundred pounds, and she was hideous. Even her hair was dull and always frizzing. There was nothing nice about her. She would constantly ask us who the most beautiful woman in the world is. If we said it was anyone but Alvida, she'd beat us."

Penguin glanced back to him, annoyed but not hostile.

"I managed to get away from her and told police where she was holed up. I was just so tired of being her punching bag. Garp took me in after. Anyway, Alvida got a few years in jail and she lost a lot of weight. When she got back out, it was like she was a different woman, but had the same attitude. She ate a bit healthier, would do exercises. Last time I saw her, she was actually gorgeous. They were scouting her for modeling at any chance they could get. She was still a total bitch, but I realized something after she was locked away. She knew she wasn't pretty, but she just needed someone to tell her she was. Even if she had to bully them into saying it.

"I was told early on to not let my past be known. Even if I was more of a prisoner than a member, people would still treat me like I was in a gang. They wouldn't trust me. I would be blacklisted before I would even get into a school. So I never told anyone."

The two were in silence for a moment before Penguin sighed lowly. "Dad didn't want another son. At least, we don't think he did. Mom and I didn't know he had another family, but when he saw me trying to do the things he did, he would get mad and hit me. Yell at me to go learn how to be a proper woman from my mother." He shook his head slowly. "I followed him one day, trying to figure out where he worked that he was gone for days. I wanted to learn how to do a man's work, too. That's how I found about my half-brother, though at that age, I wasn't able to fully understand the situation.

"Shachi found me first, saw the way I dressed myself then dragged me into his room. He gave me his clothes to wear, we were about the same size so it was an easy fit. I would go over to his home every day, and he'd let me wear his clothes and he'd let me do the things he did." A soft chuckle slipped out. "He had this treehouse in his backyard with a huge 'no girls allowed' sign on the door. But he dragged me up there, too. When his friends tried to get rid of me, he hit them all and said to stop picking on his brother."

Coby let out a small chuckle. "Sounds like he's a real good brother."

"The best I could ask for," Penguin said softly. "I actually got the name Penguin from him. Mom put me in this dress once and I hated it so much, I ran away from the party she was hosting and found Shachi. He looked at me like I was some kind of alien. Then, after I told him about Mom and the party, took me into his room and gave me a small suit that his mother bought him. When I changed into it, he laughed and said I looked like a cute little penguin. So the name stuck.

"When Mom died, Dad took me to live with his second family. He introduced me to Shachi as his sister. Shachi just shook his head and said as loud as he could 'That's not my sister. Penguin is my brother.' Dad was mad about that, too. He realized then that Shachi and I met before, and thought that Shachi was encouraging my thought process of being more boy than girl. Beat him, too."

"You dad just didn't know how to handle you or he just didn't want to admit that his daughter is different?" the guard inquired.

"We never found out," Penguin answered then smirked at the young guard. "You wouldn't know it looking at me now, but I used to have an really slim waist, wide hips, and double D breasts. My figure used to be close to Nami's."

"No way," Coby quickly denied, earning a laugh from the prisoner.

"It's true," the other replied through his soft laughter. "When I started developing, Shachi would help me bind my breasts and let me wear his clothes, the baggier the better. He even cut my hair, then I would wear my hat to hide it from Dad. At first glance, I was a boy. A lot of people had to actually look at me to realize that I am female."

"Here I was thinking you're just a really pretty boy," Coby joked with a small smile.

Penguin huffed out a soft laugh. "Some thought so, too," he said lowly. "Shachi's mother died when we were in our freshman year. Dad had women but never settled with any of them. Maybe he did and we just don't know it. He hid us from each other for so long, who's to say he wasn't hiding another family? But he was noticing the way I was, and it was making him angry. 'Act like a woman. Talk like a woman. Dress like a woman.' Over and over and over again." Smiling bitterly, he looked to Coby. "Shachi and I both share a murder under our belts, which was why we became homeless and later found by Law."

"You do?" the guard asked, blinking owlishly.

"Our father. He tried to force me into accepting my role of a woman." Penguin shook his head then bitterly continued. "A father doesn't force his daughter to accept her role as a woman by trying to rape her." Coby flinched back as Penguin let out a dark laugh. "Shachi came to help me. We were sophomores, no money beyond whatever Dad hid in the house, and we just killed him. So we ran. A few months later, Law found us. After a while, we followed him. He diagnosed me as transgender, a man living in the body of a woman, and has been getting me medication to change me. I've been on it long enough that my periods basically disappeared, my breast shrank into these tiny things, and I even started filled out more like a boy. He was supposed to do the sex-change surgery on me, but then we were caught and ended up in here. If we weren't, I would be completely male as of last month."

The guard nodded in understanding then furrowed his brows in confusion. "Wait, Lucci told me when I started that you were claiming to be a 'street urchin' that was just called Penguin," he said gently. "Then I heard the tapes and one of the sessions with Shachi mentioned you two being half-brothers."

"Shachi won't deny we're related," Penguin shrugged off. "I just kept telling a new story every time, throwing people off what I am. Usually works."

"And that was the real story," Coby deduced, but was staring at the other curiously.

Penguin smiled at him. "I'll let you decide."

Humming lowly, Coby glanced back to the door, noticing that Lucci was gone now, but Kaku was waiting for him. The guard captain was probably reassured somehow that nothing would happen. "So what happened last night?" he hesitantly asked, thinking maybe it would be too personal.

Scoffing, the prisoner shook his head. "Miscarried. That's all."

"Miscarried?!" the younger exclaimed. "You were pregnant?!"

"A while back, I was a week without my medication," he explained. "Killer knows the way I am and he knew that I was out of meds then. We were trying to be careful, but accidents happen. I got my medication again and my body wasn't producing the hormones necessary to keep on with the pregnancy. It was waging war with itself, which caused me to get violently sick and miscarry."

"Does Killer know about the baby?"

"No. Didn't tell him. I knew it wouldn't last once I got my pills back. Besides, it's for the best. Two criminals having a child in a prison would only result in the child being taken away and placed into foster care or an orphanage. And once people realize who the parents are, the child would never find a permanent home. And we would never be able to find it or see it."

Coby didn't even have to think about it to realize that it made sense. It would be what happens if the baby did survive to full term. And he doubted that it would be a peaceful pass-off when the baby would be taken away.

"I'm sorry you had to go through all that," he offered. "It sounds like you've had a rough life, but at least you had your brother and Trafalgar through it."

"My one small blessing," Penguin huffed, turning away to hide his smiling lips.

"Hey, can I ask you one more thing?"

"Guess so. You already know more than the rest of these guards."

Brow furrowed for a moment before the pink-haired guard let out a low breath. "What was your real name?"

Penguin looked back to him, staring into his gaze before straightening up and lowering his legs until they were crossed. "Penny. Not Penelope or anything like that. Just… Penny."

"Penny," Coby copied then scrunched up his face in thought. "I think Penguin rolls off the tongue better."

He earned another laugh.

 **Here is a line!**

Coby was given the privilege of escorting Penguin back down the stairs and into the block. Lucci had already let out the inmates, Strawhat and his group watching curiously as Trafalgar and Shachi argued with Killer. Eustass was just watching silently, snickering under his breath. Everyone paused upon hearing the gate open and the steps descending down. Coby led the front with Kaku behind Penguin, his nerves jittering with the various pairs of eyes on them.

Keeping a calm and cool front, he stepped off the stairs and onto the floor, stepping to the side to let Penguin stand next to him. The inmate held out his bound wrists for Coby to unlock, watching the key enter the slots then twist until the cuffs clicked open.

"Thanks," he said with a nod to the guard, stepping away.

Three steps from the guards, Penguin was grabbed by Shachi first, his brother holding him tightly before pushing him arm length away. "Are you okay? What happened? What'd they do to you?" One after another, the other was firing off questions, Penguin trying futilely to answer before finally having enough and covering the yammering mouth with his hands as Law approached next.

Kaku grabbed Coby's shoulder, signaling him to head back up the stairs. Once they were past the gate, Coby looked over his shoulder to see Penguin answering the questions calmly while Killer held onto him. Even Eustass seemed curious about what was going on, though acted like he could care less. Luffy and his crew came over as well, wanting to know if Penguin just had an upset stomach or something else was going on with him.

"What did you two talk about?" Kaku asked him curiously. "He… I mean she…"

"He," the pink-haired guard corrected. "He's transgender. He's a woman physically, but in any other regard, Penguin is a man. I think it's insulting to refer to them by birth gender than their gender identity." Shrugging, he gave the other a reassuring smirk. "I just told him a little about my past and he told me a bit about his. By the way, if it would help Lucci get a better background on him, Penguin's original name is Penny."

"I'll let him know when I can. For now, though, the doctors are here," Kaku sighed loudly, his shoulders drooping. "They're both eccentric in their own right. Jyabura and Kalifa tend to handle the ones for Kureha while Lucci and I would take care of Hiriluk's patients. But with you here, it's just you and me. Lucci has other matters to tend to anyway."

"Hiriluk has Trafalgar, Luffy, Franky, Chopper, Portgas, Vinsmoke, Killer, and Shachi," Coby listed out loud, thinking back to the tapes he listened to just days ago. "Right?"

"Right," the older guard replied with a small nod of his head. "For good reason. Hiriluk can keep up with them best, or Kureha just refuses them. Though the ones she refused were mainly Franky and Vinsmoke. She handles the others well enough. We tried splitting them evenly."

"But why only two psychiatrists to sixteen prisoners?" he inquired curiously.

"We had more," Kaku grumbled. "Eustass killed one in a fit of rage. They kept pushing him and pushing him. Two of his murder counts happened in this prison. The other was an inmate that thought he was tougher and could make Eustass submit to him."

Gulping, Coby looked to Eustass Kidd with wide, fearful eyes. Kaku bumped his arm before the younger inhaled deeply then school his face to an impassive expression. Showing fear of one of the prisoners was opening a door for them. A door they would gladly walk through.

"The others just gave up on the rest, seeing that they were getting nowhere and eventually, only Hiriluk and Kureha would do the job," the other sighed heavily. "We've had to put some of them under heavy restraint in order to keep the good doctors safe, but so long as fists don't go flying, the two are fine. Not to mention, they can handle themselves. Kureha is an old woman, but she can make anyone unable to move with just a few pokes. Good enough reason to keep her and Trafalgar apart is because the two would start talking medical and then nothing gets done."

"I will have you know, boy, that I am not old," someone said, causing Coby to sharply spin around while Kaku just sighed but kept his eyes on the inmates. The woman standing there was quite tall and very thin, long wavy silver hair falling down her back with the bangs behind held up by a pair of sunglasses. Coby was surprised by her state of dress, however. Skinny blue jeans with a sakura tank top and a blue leather jacket. Now that he thought about it, she was one of the ones talking with Chopper during Visitor's Day, but this is the first time Coby got a close-up look of her. "Who's the new kid?"

"His name is Coby, and Lucci happens to like him," Kaku explained, still not turning to the doctor. "Well enough to not hover over him or give him a chew out like Nero gets."

"Nero?" the woman repeated before waving her hand. "Never mind. If he's as bad as you're already making him sound, I'll hear all about him." Looking back to Coby, she grinned widely. "So you're the new guy? Well then, Coby, my name if Doctor Kureha. I'm one of the psychiatrists in this hellhole, but don't let my young age fool you."

"Young?" Kaku scoffed playfully. "Kureha, admit it. You're ancient."

"Shut up!" the woman shouted, bringing a foot down onto his shoulder. Kaku hardly flinched, but Coby could see just how strong that kick could be. "You're just upset that I won't share the secret to my youth!"

"You're ninety-four," the guard sighed, brushing the leg off. "Coby, as I'm sure you can already guess, Doctor Kureha likes to believe that she's a young woman and refuses to admit just how old she really is. To stay on her good side, say nothing of her age."

"Noted," the younger accepted with a sharp nod.

 **Here is a line!**

Hiriluk was not what Coby expected after listening to the tapes. He expected a calm man, probably middle age if not older, with a wise look about him. Instead, the psychiatrist is about as eccentric as everyone else in the prison. His hair was stuck out in three different directions, one up and the other two to the sides. He seemed to try and dress professionally (somewhat), but the colors jumped out and hit Coby across the face.

"Ah-ha! Who is the new kid?" the doctor asked enthusiastically.

"This is Coby," Kaku introduced. "He'll be taking Lucci's place for the sessions today. Maybe all sessions, if he manages to stick around."

"Well, the more the merrier!" Hiriluk accepted with a beaming smile and nod of his head. "Nice to meet you, Coby."

"You too, Doctor," Coby replied politely, giving the older man a small bow.

"Now then!" Hiriluk exclaimed, clasping his hands together. "Shall we begin? Tell me, who is my first visitor today?"

"Same as usual," Kaku told him as he opened the door to allow the psychiatrist to enter the room, his eyes focused on the tattooed doctor smirking at them from his seat, his wrists and ankles handcuffed to the chair. "I trust you were already informed of our latest discovery."

"Yes, Kureha was told and she just had to share it with me," the man replied with a nod of his head as he went to the other side of the table. "But that is one of her patients, so it of no concern to me for the moment."

Kaku signaled for Coby to stay by the door before going to the opposite corner along the same wall. Hiriluk pulled out a recorder then placed a tape inside. Closing the item, he pressed play to make sure the unlabelled tape was not one that was used and just not written on. When no sounds emerged from the speakers, he stopped the tape then pressed the record button.

"This is Doctor Hiriluk with Trafalgar D Water Law," he spoke out loud, calmer than earlier. "Session Sixteen. Tell me how you're doing today, Law."

"I don't follow orders," the prisoner threw out.

"It wasn't meant as an order, simply an inquiry," Hiriluk excused before waving his hand. "Last time we spoke, you told me about your experiences in Amazon Lily. Though your crimes were not as numerous there as they were everywhere else, was there anything about that place that drew you?"

"No," Trafalgar answered. "Amazon Lily was a good place to lay low for a while, though most of the population is made up of women."

"And that is where one of your men was charged with kidnapping and rape," the psychiatrist commented. "A young girl of sixteen."

"If she didn't tease him so much, she wouldn't have been kidnapped in the first place," the tattooed prisoner scoffed, rolling his golden eyes. "Well, it wasn't really kidnap. You see, she was curious about the anatomy of a man, having no father in her life and interacting with only women. She kept asking us questions, and Shachi offered to show her the answers. I simply let them do what they wanted."

"And after Amazon Lily, when you and your friends had to leave so abruptly," Hiriluk continued, opening a thick manila folder and looking over the various pages inside. "You completely vanished for months. No murders matching your MO. No signs of you. Nothing. Where did you go?"

"Why should I even tell you?" Trafalgar chuckled darkly. "If you must know, we were laying low with a good friend of ours. Their name is… Nowhere."

Coby almost blanched, catching Kaku's eye long enough to notice the eye-roll the other guard sent him.

"Very funny," the older man sighed lowly, shaking his head. "Is there anything you wanted to share with me this session?"

"Well… hmm…" Trafalgar rolled his head back, looking at Coby with narrowed eyes before they slid close and he let out a soft huff. "We have difficulty sleeping at night because of the new guard. In fact, just about everyone in the block wants to kill him. If Penguin was not so sick last night, Nero would be dead."

"You planned to murder _another_ guard?" Hiriluk asked incredulously. Kaku's fists clenched tightly into his elbow, easy to miss if Coby didn't look over when he did.

"We wish to sleep at night without having someone hit the bars and yell at us to be quiet every time someone snores," Trafalgar drawled boredly. "We kind of like this one here. Strawhat and his brothers already adopted him, from what I understand. Nero, however… He needs to leave. Whether it be of his own will, Lucci's will, or in a body bag." He chuckled again, licking at his lips. "I would love to start a new collection."

Collection? Coby tried to think back to what he read in that file. Certain locations when they managed to figure out where the Surgeon was showed signs of immediate vacancy. Meaning everyone grabbed what they needed and bolted. At those certain locations, there were hearts belonging to the victims. DNA testing provided which heart belongs to which victim, some of them belong to people they hadn't even found yet. And still haven't, from what he understands.

Trafalgar collected the hearts. It would make sense, after all. A proud serial killer like him would want to keep a trophy of his accomplishment. A reason to gloat over the police. 'Seen how many people I killed before you caught me?' he asked during his interrogation. No one ever found the hearts right after finding the victims, so it would make sense that he simply took the organs for keeps before getting rid of the bodies.

The questions continued on until the half-hour was up. They only get thirty minutes with the prisoners due to how many there are and because of their short staff concerning the ones who could handle the dangerous criminals. He and Kaku escorted Trafalgar back to the block. The pink-haired guard was told to stay at the stairs to prevent anyone from trying an escape attempt while Kaku grabbed the next prisoner.

"Hey, Coby!" Luffy called excitedly, running up to him and throwing his arms around Coby's head in order to hug him with the cuffs on. "You get to be there? Awesome!"

"Strawhat," Kaku sighed, forcefully removing the arms from the surprised guard. "Stop grabbing people."

"Aw, but I was just so happy to see him," the raven pouted as Kaku pushed him to the stairs. "You don't let him talk to us."

"You have enough friends," the orange-haired guard chuckled with a shake of his head. "You don't need anymore."

"I know why you're always against me making friends," Luffy said calmly. "It's because you don't have enough."

"I have friends, but you're not supposed to make friends with guards," he corrected. "I keep telling you that."

"Nya, you're boring!" Luffy declared, sticking his tongue out at the older guard.

"Come on, Luffy," Coby laughed lightly. "Don't pester Kaku too much or I have to suffer under his bad mood."

"What is this? Gang Up On Kaku Day?" the older scoffed half-heartedly.

"I thought that was every day," Coby quipped with a smile.

Golden eyes watched the trio leave the block, waiting for them to ascend the stairs and close the gate behind them. With a low huff, he turned to Shachi. "How is Penguin?" he inquired.

"Doing better," Shachi sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "The trick is getting Killer away from him. I don't think I've ever seen that guy so worried before."

Law chuckled softly, plucking Bepo off the seat next to his subordinate. "I think we will have to extend an invitation to Eustass-ya and Killer-ya. Either that, or an alliance."

"Doflamingo would probably stab them in the back," Shachi pointed out.

"Not if he wants me back in his bed," the surgeon replied, looking into Bepo's eyes. "Hear that? If anything happens to Eustass-ya, or to Killer-ya because he's Penguin's, Doffy gets nothing from me."

"I'm sure the message is loud and clear," the other laughed lightly.

 **Here the Chapter Ends**

 **So this is as far as I am able to go. For now. You guys know that updates don't happen as often as you guys would like concerning this story. That's mainly because, unlike my other stories that are multiple chapters written before I even post the first, this one is written chapter by chapter and posted almost as soon as the chapter is done. Because I'm impatient.**

 **And yes, I threw in a gender-bender that is transgender. I thought it would make things a bit more dramatic. And admit it! It was a curve none of you were expecting. ^^ I sometimes like to think I'm clever.**

 **Well, let me know what you guys think! I will try to update as soon as I can, but promise nothing.**


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